That day, Angelina Grey was in the foulest mood of her life.
Why, why, why, why?!
She hurled her pillow at the wall, gasping for breath.
While she glared at the maid who had been standing by to help her dress for the morning, Angelina drove her fist into the wall. The sight of the young maid’s pale, stricken face only enraged her further.
“Out! Get out right now!”
At her scream, the maid stumbled over her own feet as she fled the room.
The clumsy retreat stoked Angelina’s fury even more, and she kicked the foot of the bed. Could even a worthless servant not manage to leave a room promptly?
Why, why, why won’t this make sense?! She bit her lip and clenched her fists. Why has time rewound?!
Angelina Grey—the so-called villainess—had killed Milly Asteara, the “final boss.” Of that, she was certain.
This world was an otome game.
The reason Angelina could believe something so far-fetched so easily was because she retained the memories of her previous life. Memories that were nothing but wretched, devoid of anything pleasant.
That was only natural. In her former life, Angelina had never made a single friend. Or rather, she had never bothered to try. Surrounded by fools, she’d never felt the slightest urge to befriend anyone. Mock them, yes. Berate them, certainly. But camaraderie? Never.
Everyone around her had been an idiot.
If idiots at least proved useful to her, she might have tolerated them. But since they only ever brought her trouble, there was no point. The only things Angelina had ever been able to lose herself in were otome games and anime. Among them, the one that had captivated her most was a game she had bought on a whim because of its striking package art: The Kingdom of Blossoms: Magi.
Set in a pseudo-medieval fantasy world flavored with modern Japanese values, it had stat systems and light battle elements, and the heroine’s growth determined which ending the player would reach.
Within that game, Angelina Grey had appeared as what you’d call the villainess.
Consumed by jealousy, she bullied the heroine, stood against her as a rival at times, and in the end acknowledged her sins and made peace. A stock villainess role, played by none other than Angelina Grey.
In her previous life, she’d been so fixated on the love interests that she hadn’t spared a thought for any side characters. But when she realized she had been reincarnated as the villainess herself, one thought came instantly to mind: Delicious.
I’ve been reincarnated into an otome game, haven’t I? If that’s the case, then I should be able to end up with one of the love interests myself!
Angelina had always adored one character above all others, to the point of obsession even before this life: Gilbert Fritzner. Second prince of the Kingdom of Aviria, and the game’s main romance option. From his looks to his personality, Angelina loved everything about him.
Not only Gilbert himself, but the mere concept that the high-spec second prince would notice and choose a mere commoner like her had been irresistible. Just imagining how bitterly the other suitors must have felt when they were passed over was enough to thrill her.
That was why, when she entered the academy—the game’s stage—reincarnated as the villainess, Angelina had been unable to tear her eyes from Gilbert the moment she saw him.
Her desire to be with him had only grown stronger, and she reveled in the conviction that she had the right.
After all, she was the villainess. In reincarnation stories, this role was practically a protagonist’s seat. Surely she was destined to end up with Gilbert. That thought filled her with joy—so much joy, in fact, that she’d wanted to flaunt her position.
She remembered now how she had gone around proclaiming to everyone that she was the villainess. People had stared at her in confusion, but that was fine. Fools who lacked even the right to romance a love interest could do nothing but gape like idiots.
I know what’s coming thanks to the game. I even know all the choices. This world revolves around me!
Bullying the heroine was out of the question. Instead, she had drawn close enough to call her a friend, while steadily building rapport with Gilbert. All, of course, to ensure she would be the one to end up with him.
And then came the ending.
The game’s final villain—Grand Duke Kyle Asteara—was executed by Gilbert, and peace returned to the kingdom.
On that day, under the bell tower where the confession event was meant to take place, Angelina waited for Gilbert. Naturally, to receive his declaration of love. But no matter how long she waited, Gilbert never came.
The confession CG should have triggered at sunset, but the sun went down, darkness fell, and still Gilbert never appeared. In the end, Angelina had to return home alone.
Why?
At first, she thought maybe the heroine had interfered. But with Angelina constantly by her side, the girl hadn’t had the time to grow close with any of the love interests.
Kyle Asteara was dead. She had grown closer to Gilbert. And yet, her happy ending never came.
Why?
The question haunted her for days, until Angelina stumbled upon an utterly unforeseen truth.
Milly Asteara was still alive.
Milly was the final boss who set into motion the many incidents that occurred within the academy.
It was Milly who deceived her father Kyle and pushed him toward betraying the kingdom. And she was notoriously tenacious. Of the two battles with Milly in the game, the first was a so-called forced loss event: an invincible Milly who nullified every spell and simply overwhelmed the heroine.
At that point, the heroine was nearly killed, only to be rescued at the last second by whichever love interest had the highest affection score.
That was when the heroine learned the reason her attacks hadn’t landed on Milly: the Grand Duke’s Blessing.
When she was a child, her father Kyle had placed a spell upon her that nullified all attacks. Once that secret was revealed, the story advanced quickly. With Kyle condemned for treason and executed, the tale moved to the heroine’s second battle against Milly.
Unlike the first, doomed fight, the second was a victory event.
With Kyle dead, the Grand Duke’s Blessing vanished. The heroine joined forces with the love interests and defeated Milly. Driven to despair, Milly followed her father into death, and peace returned to the kingdom.
Angelina loved that development. She despised the character of Milly.
Milly was Gilbert’s childhood friend. That alone was enough to infuriate Angelina, who adored him. Worse still, Milly was a popular character among players, which only made Angelina seethe more.
But in the real world?
Even after Kyle was executed, Milly strolled through the academy as if nothing had happened, calmly reading with the air of someone who had never lost her title. Seeing that, Angelina was convinced. The heroine had failed to kill Milly as the scenario dictated. That was why things had gone so wrong.
Her uselessness infuriated Angelina. But thinking it over, she realized it made sense. After all, in this world, the heroine wasn’t the game’s protagonist. She was. She, the reincarnated villainess, Angelina.
This wasn’t a broken storyline; it was a divine message: The right to kill Milly Asteara, as the true heroine, belonged to Angelina.
Yes. If she killed Milly Asteara, everything would fall into place.
Watching Milly’s life slip away before her eyes had been the greatest thrill.
Watching that hated girl’s face twist in pain had been so satisfying. It almost felt cleansing.
And yet...
“Why?”
The next time she opened her eyes, she was staring up at the familiar canopy of her bed.
She realized at once that time had rewound. The diary she kept daily to track the game’s progression had stopped at a date three years in the past.
“She... She did something.”
Milly Asteara.
It had to be her. The “final boss.” She must have tampered with the scenario somehow. Nothing else could explain it.
“It’s because she...because she didn’t die like the story demanded!” It could only be that. Muttering in a low voice, Angelina slammed her fist into the wall again. “This time, I’ll make it a happy ending.”
This time, she wouldn’t fail.
She would send Milly to the afterlife for certain, and she would end up with Gilbert. Not even the heroine would get in her way. She would make the world revolve around Angelina once more.
“I’m going to take everything you have.” Clenching her teeth, Angelina strode out of the room, her heels clicking sharply against the floor.
So consumed by rage, Angelina never stopped to consider the unthinkable. That Milly, too, had realized time had rewound. That Milly was already plotting revenge.
Blinded by the belief that the world revolved around her, Angelina couldn’t imagine such possibilities.