Previously
Eun-ju, a woman with extraordinary financial luck and an obsession with the minor character Euclid Rodion, awakens as the villainess Evgenia Basilian. To her shock, her beloved Euclid, now her husband, presents her with divorce papers.
Two days had passed since I woke up in Evgenia's body.
Feeling a dull headache, I rested a hand against my forehead and felt the bandage wrapped around it.
The memories of the past two days rushed back all at once—first, my bewilderment at the antique bedroom, and second, the sight of a Western woman dressed in a maid's uniform.
At that moment, I was startled to hear the name slip so naturally from my lips.
The realization struck me immediately: Anne was the loyal maid of Evgenia, the villainess in The Saintess’s Dangerous Choice.
In other words, I had somehow ended up inside the novel—an unbelievable turn of events straight out of fiction!
Could I have died? No, a truck hadn't even hit me.
Yet my bewilderment faded quickly.
( ‘That's right, I sent that email…’ )
A hazy memory surfaced: rather than leaving a long hate comment, I had sent a blunt email demanding the author write the manuscript. Feeling somewhat embarrassed now, I wondered if that was the reason.
I embraced the situation without resistance.
( ‘Right. I don't know why, but I suppose I'll just have to accept it.’ )
At first, I had been confused and thought it was a dream. But even after sleeping and waking up again, this place remained my reality.
Shaking my head, I resigned myself to it.
However—
A sly chuckle escaped my lips.
I looked into the mirror.
Even with the bandage wrapped around my forehead, it could not hide my striking face, framed by long, pitch-black hair and mysterious, enchanting purple eyes.
Only the upward slant of my eyes lent me a sharp, intimidating look… the face of a villainess, every bit as wicked as she appeared.
Indeed, this body belonged to a notorious villainess. Yet fate had destined her to marry my absolute favorite character, Euclid.
…Well, even if they ended up divorced, making him her ex-husband. Ha.
Still, as the title Dangerous Choice implied, each of the three male leads harbored a dangerous and somewhat volatile side.
Despite that, the novel enjoyed immense popularity, and the comment sections were flooded with readers fiercely rooting for their favored male leads.
( ‘…Except for me.’ )
Unfortunately, I had taken no part in those ship wars.
Though I had enjoyed extraordinary luck in investing, turning random choices into massive windfalls, my fortune had always been strictly confined to money.
( ‘Of all people, I had to fall for a minor character!’ )
The husband of a villainess who neglected her family and clung desperately to the Crown Prince!
Yes, my favorite character was Euclid Rodion.
An impoverished duke who had married the villainess despite his high noble standing, only to suffer under crushing poverty.
I had no idea why I had become so completely fixated on such a minor figure.
From the very moment Euclid appeared, he had captured my heart.
Unlike the arrogant, self-absorbed male leads, Euclid was unfailingly gentle and courteous, which set him apart.
In truth, however, he barely had any presence in the novel. Once their divorce was finalized, he was never mentioned again until the very end.
Yet now, regardless of the original story, everything was about to change because I was here.
After possessing this body, it felt as though this world belonged to me, like something I had yearned for all along.
( ‘Well, I'm not wrong.’ )
Even when I had plenty of money, I had always craved more.
I held no attachment to my past life, and I used to shed tears over Euclid's meager page time, wishing I could meet him just once.
So I chose to believe that a higher power, whether the author or God, had granted my wish.
They were silently urging me to forge a new story centered around Euclid myself!
As I chuckled, picturing the bright future awaiting my favorite character, a sudden gasp of “Eep!” came from nearby.
Looking up, I saw Anne, who had just stepped into the room, trembling as she stared at me.
( ‘Anyone would think she just overheard me plotting someone's murder.’ )
I was confused for a second, but remembering Evgenia's terrifying visage, I quickly understood.
Much as I hated to admit it, my face in my previous life had been no less frightening than hers, so I was quite used to such reactions.
Anne replied with sharp, disciplined haste, pulling a sturdy rope from her satchel.
She looked to be about seventeen, with large, gentle eyes like a puppy's. Seeing her brisk movements made me want to pat her head and praise her, but…
( ‘That would only scare her, wouldn't it?’ )
Such behavior would be entirely out of character for Evgenia, and it would undoubtedly seem bizarre to Anne.
Most people who are transported into fantasy worlds talk about inheriting residual memories from their new bodies, yet strangely enough, I possessed none of Evgenia's past.
Under the circumstances, hiding my unusual state from my sole close companion, Anne, was impossible, so I had resorted to a rather predictable excuse, claiming I suffered from “partial amnesia.”
Fortunately, Anne readily accepted my lie. After all, an actual incident had left a bandage wrapped around the forehead of Evgenia, a noble lady.
Even if Anne was a trustworthy ally, should she discover that I was not truly Evgenia, but an interloper from another world occupying this body, she might turn against me. So I asked as coldly as possible, mimicking Evgenia's manner…
Anne stammered nervously, her voice quavering with fear.
The Crown Prince sent a proposal letter to Melissa?
Fortunately, the plot had not progressed very far; it was still near the beginning. Melissa had only recently arrived at the Duke's estate, having gradually crossed paths with each of her suitors—the Crown Prince, who had no idea his mother was a Basilian princess and that he was the Duke's only nephew, as well as the High Priest, who had visited under the guise of volunteer work.
Moreover, though Evgenia possessed a foul temper, she was generally indifferent to anyone other than the Crown Prince.
( ‘So she hasn't started tormenting Melissa yet… Oh.’ )
Now that I thought about it, hadn't Anne said Evgenia already knew about the proposal?
Could she have already rushed over to Melissa and caused a scene? Or perhaps that was why she collapsed…
Please! Please, let it just be that she fainted from shock and accidentally banged her head against a corner!
Fighting back my rising anxiety, I asked.
I hastily raised a hand to cut Anne off.
( ‘Evgenia, are you completely out of your mind?!’ )
She had harmed herself out of sheer rage? And deliberately stormed into the Duke's office to do it?
The novel did mention that Evgenia was prone to throwing tantrums and harming her own body, such as refusing food whenever she was in a foul mood.
I had always strived to be polite, even if I was not inherently gentle, yet here I was, possessing a character who acted with such utter recklessness.
Just as I felt a heavy sigh welling up—
( ‘No, no, that's wrong.’ )
I had no right to complain.
After all, it was precisely because of her volatile temper that the Crown Prince despised Evgenia, which in turn paved the way for her marriage to Euclid.
With a change of heart, I resolved to seek out the Duke at once, apologize, and declare that I would renounce my obsession with the Crown Prince.
Yet the moment I pulled the door open—clatter!
A sharp metallic clink rang out, and a pointed object thrust into my field of vision, momentarily blinding me with panic.
“…!“
In truth, I possessed a tender heart beneath my fierce appearance.
Though it was never severe enough to disrupt my daily life, I suffered from a fear of pointed objects—a mild case of aichmophobia.
As panic set in and I imagined the spear lunging straight toward me, I squeezed my eyes shut.
A sharp voice rang out, so fierce and commanding that I could hardly believe it came from Anne.
At her reprimand, I heard the knight hurriedly pull back the spear that had blocked my path.
Anne's words, brimming with heartfelt devotion to Evgenia, were meant to soothe me. She leaned in close, whispering as if she knew I was frightened.
My heart, which had been pounding violently, gradually slowed to its normal rhythm.
I slowly opened my eyes and looked around, taking in the knight's intimidated expression and the spear he had set aside.
And then the truth dawned on me: I was currently under house arrest!