The Villainess’s Guide to Winning the Male Lead

The revelation that he was indeed the crown prince took me by surprise. I should have suspected it when he casually used a nickname for Kabir, but the chaotic ambiance had clouded my judgment. In the original work, the crown prince was a passing extra, but I did know some basic information about him.

He was described with flamboyant golden hair and red eyes, an undeniably striking appearance.

However, the man before me was a far cry from that description. Ordinary brown hair, ordinary looks. The royal family was known for their blond genetics, so why did the crown prince have brown hair?

Regardless of my confusion, Prince Irmin addressed me with ease.

“You can call me by my name, right? Anais.”

“Oh, yes, sure.”

“And you can call me informally too.”

“…….”

Was he serious?

Even as a noblewoman, I couldn’t afford to be informal with the crown prince. Even someone as reckless as me knew some basic decorum.

“If you’re hesitant, just be comfortable. He really doesn’t mind,” Kabir interjected, noticing my hesitation.

“I’ll still address you as ‘Your Highness.’”

“There’s no need to be so formal—”

Prince Irmin seemed all too laid-back. He just smiled at me, amused.

“But why meet in a place like this?”

As difficult as it was to converse with him, my curiosity needed to be satisfied.

Irmin answered nonchalantly.

“I snuck out. If I’d called you to the palace, it would’ve been obvious.”

Even so, choosing a common tavern as the meeting place was quite extraordinary for Prince Irmin.

“I heard His Highness is quite busy.”

That was the information provided in the original work.

Nevertheless, it was hard to reconcile the carefree Prince Irmin in this tavern with the information I knew.

“I just leave the work to my brother. With the right clothes, he’s a perfect stand-in.”

His reply left me with more questions than answers.

Wouldn’t the close associates notice the difference between the prince and his brother?

“Won’t it be obvious…?”

Even if they were brothers, impersonating the crown prince seemed a stretch.

At my question, both Kabir and Irmin looked at me.

“……?”

Why were they staring?

Their gaze made me even more uncomfortable. Both looked puzzled.

Seeing my confused expression, Kabir let out a sigh.

“Irmin and the crown prince are identical twins.”

Ah.

That would make it quite easy to deceive others.

Irmin mumbled, hand covering his mouth.

“You might not care much about imperial affairs, but this is basic knowledge…”

“…….”

I was at a loss for words. Regrettably, I hadn’t been in this empire long enough to familiarize myself with the royal family.

‘This darn novel only really detailed the main characters and left out everything else.’

Or perhaps I had simply forgotten. I sneakily glanced at the chat window.

[OnlyFinley: The brown hair reminds me of Eric…]

[Stress: I told you to change that nickname.]

Given their nonsensical chatter, it seemed even the celestial beings were unaware. It was a relief I wasn’t the only clueless one here.

At least, it was fortunate that Anais, being notorious as a troublemaker, wasn’t expected to be knowledgeable about imperial matters. It allowed me to slip by without raising too much suspicion.

I decided to change the topic.

“Is His Highness the prince not bothered by this arrangement?”

It must have been quite a contention for the position of the crown prince, delegating his duties like this. If I were him, I would have had quite a few complaints, which led me to ask the question.

“Of course, he’s full of complaints.”

Irmin responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“But what can he do? It’s the crown prince’s command. He just obediently follows.”

“……”

He seemed like the worst kind of brother.

Kabir appeared indifferent to Irmin’s attitude as if he was used to it.

“It’s refreshing, though, you’re not intimidated and you’re speaking up. You do seem to have the spunk the rumors talk about.”

Irmin seemed quite taken with me.

Maybe there’s a rule that oddballs recognize each other. I did sense a kindred spirit in Irmin.

Irmin then stood up.

“Leaving already?”

“I just came to see your face. That’s enough for now.”

Irmin smiled at me before leaving.

“Let’s meet again soon, Lady Erpeso.”

With those words, the crown prince vanished before my eyes, likely using magic.

“…A scroll?”

“No. He’s quite skilled in magic.”

A prince who’s also a magician. Perhaps it was his magical talent that secured his position as the crown prince. In this world, magic was a highly revered skill.

“You seem quite close.”

“Like I said, he’s the one who keeps insisting we’re close.”

Yet Kabir’s demeanor towards Irmin seemed quite relaxed.

Even a homebody like him managed to make a friend. It was surprising, especially since he never showed his face at royal events. It was intriguing that they were privately close.

* * *

A ring now adorned my left ring finger. It was the one Kabir and I had picked out during our outing.

We decided to take our time with the engagement ceremony, but the feeling of being engaged to someone was peculiar.

‘…It’ll work out somehow, right?’

I had no intention of marrying, so it would ultimately lead to a breakup, but the smooth progress of events left me feeling unsettled. It was as if I was truly about to get married.

Surprisingly, the one who opposed my engagement with Kabir was Selena.

“Why would you do that?!”

It was just like a normal tea time until I shared the news of the engagement with Selena, which elicited a strong reaction from her.

It made sense for Selena to be flabbergasted. She had been brought in to ensure that I wouldn’t get engaged to anyone, and suddenly, Kabir and I were betrothed. It must have seemed absurd to her.

“That’s how it turned out.”

“That’s… “

Selena looked deeply shocked. She didn’t seem particularly interested in Kabir, so her reaction puzzled me. The chat window offered some clarification.

[OnlyFinley: Classic kind Selenaㅠㅠ]

[Poppopo: She’s worried, how kind]

It was concern for me. That made sense. Selena had grown closer to me lately, and her position as the daughter of a grand duke inherently exposed her to certain dangers. Indeed, both Eric and Selena had narrowly escaped harm from magical beasts before. So, it’s understandable that she was well aware of the dangers associated with this estate.

Selena stood up abruptly.

“I have to do something about this! I’ll go talk to them!”

“Huh?”

“I’ll be right back!”

With that, Selena dashed out of the room.

…What just happened?

I was left bewildered by the whirlwind of events.

It seemed tea time was over. I got up and walked outside.

Eric, who had been guarding outside, seemed to have disappeared, likely following Selena. Ever since he became her personal guard, it had been difficult to catch a glimpse of him.

Today was the manager’s day off in his guise as Bates. Another knight was supposed to come to guard me, but I wondered when they would arrive.

Frankly, I didn’t see the need for a guard since I was just staying inside the mansion, but Kabir was insistent on the matter. It’s ironic how overprotective he is, even though he doesn’t know I’m technically dead.

As I waited in my room for the temporary guard to arrive, there was a knock at the door.

The person who entered had pure white hair. I didn’t recognize him.

Apart from his hair color, he was quite ordinary, unremarkable except for his lean build for a knight.

This must be the new guard. As I stared at him silently, the man flashed a bright smile.

“Hello!”

“……?”

It was an unusually casual greeting.

As I looked at him incredulously, the man closed the door firmly behind him and said,

“It’s me, Irmin.”

“…….”

I just stared at him blankly.

Irmin? He looked completely different from the man I saw yesterday.

“…Your Highness?”

“Yep.”

“Why exactly…?”

Surprised by the stark contrast between Irmin’s appearance yesterday and today, and considering it was a time when he would usually be busy with duties, I couldn’t grasp why he was here in disguise.

Irmin casually dissolved my confusion.

“Just came to hang out.”

“…….”

I wondered if a crown prince could really afford to be this leisurely.

And he was exceedingly carefree. There was none of the dignity typically associated with a crown prince.

“Do you always do this?”

“Yeah, sometimes I sneak out to see Kabir without him knowing.”

“Do you really have to…?”

“Just wanted to see an old friend’s face— keep it a secret from Kabir, okay?”

If he was here as my guard, he must have seen Kabir’s face. How he managed the impersonation was a mystery.

But setting that aside, something else piqued my curiosity.

“There’s a spell for this?”

It seemed every time I met Irmin, his appearance changed, likely due to magic. There seemed no other explanation.

True to my speculation, Irmin nonchalantly confirmed.

“I developed it.”

Transformation magic wasn’t common, as I could tell. Otherwise, the empire would have already banned it.

Given his reputed magical prowess, it seemed he had indeed developed a high-level spell himself. Irmin’s abilities were evidently remarkable.

I wanted that spell.

It was the kind of magic that, if you could use it, would undoubtedly prove useful in countless situations.

I quietly glanced at the chat window. My manager, who had a day off from playing Bates, was ‘at work’ in the chat window instead.

I looked longingly at the shop section, hinting that I wanted it included.

Catching my hint, the manager sent a reluctant chat.

[Manager: ;;]

[PleaseShakeACarrot: That would be cool, right?ㅋㅋ]

[Something: Let’s make oneㄱㄱ]

[Manager: Keep it down]

As expected, my viewers were on my side and pressured the manager. Pretending to resist, he would eventually make it. I smiled faintly.

“Anais.”

Irmin called, and I looked up.

Irmin, wearing an unfamiliar face, was smiling at me.

“Actually, I came to see you today.”

“…Me?”

“There’s something I really need to ask you.”

He had something to ask me?

I looked at him, puzzled, and Irmin spoke with a nonchalant face.

“How did you come back to life after dying?”

It was a bombshell question that didn’t match his serene expression.