It was unfair. Since the novel was a bestseller, thousands of people at the very least must have read it. Out of everyone, why’d it have to be me? I’d barely even read half of it! When my favorite character, Villainess No. 4, was found dead in a prison, I’d been so disappointed that I’d stopped reading and fallen asleep.

“But why?” I had wondered aloud but no answer came. Soon the smell of a sleeping herb had drifted through the room, and I lost consciousness. When I woke up, I had found myself at the auction house.

Well, at least I’m Villainess No. 4... right?

Shaye. Villainess No. 4.

She clung to the male protagonist with the most desperation, and she hated the original novel’s heroine for being with the protagonist. In the end, the villainess saw the heroine fall off a cliff and did nothing to save her, but the male protagonist saw this and imprisoned her. She met a terrible death without a proper trial.

But it wasn’t fair. Even though Villainess No. 4 did all sorts of small bad things, she herself didn’t push the heroine off the cliff, rather she’d been set up by Villainess No. 1. Villainess No. 4 was the most pitiful girl, hated by the other three villainesses, so it did make sense for her to meet such an end.

And the reason why Villainess No. 4 is hated so much was... Her beauty. Really, she was stunning. What a dumb, old-fashioned reason. I’d rather befriend pretty girls, not kill them. Anyway, while each villainess had her own charm, Villainess No. 4 had a fatal beauty.

I’d laughed many times reading such descriptions. Seriously? Why doesn’t it just say she could seduce men by merely batting her eyelashes? But not long after I thought that, the same exact same sentence appeared in the novel.

The author went above and beyond to emphasize how beautiful the villainess was. Although I found it stupid, I couldn’t help but be intrigued and waited eagerly for her first appearance. It was only now that I was finding out exactly how Villainess No. 4 was such a femme fatale.

This is crazy!

Before I could even have a proper conversation with Archduke Schubeiden, the man who’d bought me, I was forced to wash up first. I stood in front of the mirror with my hair dripping wet.

I then shrieked, “I love you!”

I even slammed my forehead against the mirror. It hurt, of course, but still, I couldn’t help grinning like a fool as I stared at my reflection.

Beautiful. Insanely beautiful! I take back what I said earlier. The author was right.

No longer dusty, my red hair was as lovely as rose petals. My eyes were long like a fox’s, my eyelashes were thick and lavish, and my skin was smooth like jade. Even the tiniest smile made me stare at myself.

And my body! Villainess No. 4 wasn’t a thin, fragile woman, no, she was hot. Yup, she was sexy, older sister style! Right now, I was somewhat thin from starving for a few days, but once I put on some weight, I’d be curvy in no time.

Oh my god. Is this really me? For real?

Well, it’s human nature to appreciate beauty. For a second, I almost forgot my situation and cheered for joy because of this new body. My silver eyes sparkled seductively, showing just a hint of blue. I’d never been able to see my clavicles before, but now they were straight and visible.

Not only is Villainess No. 4 this beautiful, but she’s also an art mage. Why is she not the heroine? I lamented this world that preferred naive, fragile heroines.

“Miss, the archduke wants to have lunch with you downstairs.”

The voice brought me back to my senses. It was Theobalt the butler.

“I’ll be down in a moment,” I said, remembering he’d left a dress in the wardrobe earlier.

I’d calmed down—to some extent—and stopped being so rude to him. After all, he was just an old man. Plus, now I really believed that the people of this manor wouldn’t harm me. I’d kept listening while I was bathing and didn’t hear any footsteps.

I’m now beautiful enough to drive any human insane, but no one came to bother me.

This meant that at least they were humans, not animals.

I brushed my hair back and stepped away from the mirror.

After drying off and dressing, I made my way down to the dining hall.

“So you’ve finally calmed down,” the archduke said as I entered the room. He was reading a newspaper.

This world was a mixed bag, it had medieval-style, sword-wielding knights on horseback, but it also had quite advanced technology like trains and airships.

I stared hard at the huge title of the newspaper as he put it down.

“Archduke Schubeiden in love with a beautiful woman?” I read aloud.

Archduke Schubeiden? But that’s him. But in the story, he only loved the heroine!

“It’s wembu.”

“wembu?”

“A collection of useless rumors and false information,” he said, frowning at my curiosity.

Oh, he means tabloids.

I sat down and soon Maynard plodded in, setting down our meal. He glanced at me and blushed before leaving.

Excellent. So innocent.

“Eat. It’s a thin clam soup, so it should be easy to swallow.”

“It’s delicious!”

The soup really tasted great, the creamy flavor was wonderful.

This is called a clam chowder, right?

I hadn’t had a proper meal ever since I woke up in this world, so it took a lot of willpower to not devour everything at once. I didn’t want to upset my stomach. At least my brain could still think rationally.

We were halfway through the meal when suddenly the archduke broke his silence.

“First, I should introduce myself. My name is Lacius de Schubeiden.”

I already knew his name, of course. While reading, I’d kept thinking that he fit his name perfectly.

“I’m Shaye,” I said between mouthfuls, my tone icy.

He didn’t seem bothered, instead he just wiped his mouth gracefully with his napkin before asking, “How did you end up being captured?”

I was so engrossed in eating that my nose was almost touching the plate, which gave me some time to think about how to respond.

Oh, er... What was Villainess No. 4’s story again?

She was from a small magic kingdom called Edmund and had been born into an extremely rare bloodline of “art mages.” They had the power to draw something and make it come to life. This power was only passed down by lineage. Basically, they could turn two-dimensional drawings into four-dimensional objects. They could draw a pile of gauts worth hundreds of billions, and it would all become real money. Of course, each gold coin had a unique serial number, so no one was stupid enough to forge them, but at least it was theoretically possible. Besides, it didn’t have to be money. They could make basically anything. There was no limit to a drawing mage’s powers.

Many influential men naturally wanted this power, so drawing mages had to try their best to conceal their abilities. If they got caught, they’d be forced to draw forever. They’d also be forced to have kids to continue their bloodline. It would be better to commit suicide.

“They found out... that I’m a drawing mage,” I said in a low voice, after some deliberation.

The archduke nodded. “You were chased.”

“I ran to the desert, but I didn’t have any pen or paper.”

“Oh, right. Your kind has that limit.”

To use magic through drawing, you needed paper, even the cheapest kind. Pen, brush, or coal, it didn’t matter. But paper, cloth, or a canvas was a must. Shaye must have gotten captured because she didn’t have any.

I complimented myself silently for deducing Villainess No. 4’s past so well. Then I turned toward the bowl of fresh salad.

“Then you have nowhere to return to, right?” the archduke asked leisurely as I pulled my bowl in front of me.

He was implying something, so I raised an eyebrow and studied him.

Why are you asking me that when I’m going to run the second I start feeling better? How scary.

Sunlight came through the wide window and shone upon his blond hair. A strange glint flashed in his cold blue-gray eyes.

“If you have nowhere to go, you can stay here for a while,” he said.

Oh, but this is... Yes, Villainess No. 4 recalled this scene in the story.

I remembered the lines he was about to say next.

“I want you to testify against the criminals linked to that slave auction house. Once you’re done with it, I’ll send you anywhere you wish.” It sounded perfect in his curt, professional voice. The author really described him to a tee.

Lacius’ eyes were deathly cold, but when combined with his looks, the author had intended him to look even more charming. But now that I saw him for myself, he looked rather weary.

“Hmm, okay. I need to recover anyway.”

“Good. Theobalt, bring her some paper to write her statement.” The butler jumped into action and hurried out of the room.

The archduke gave me one final look before he left the hall. He obviously didn’t want to talk any further, but it didn’t bother me. He hated attention. As the male protagonist, he’d been stalked for most of his life. Inevitably, he hated it when someone looked at him, and he also hated talking more than necessary. The heroine was the only exception.

“Oh, he left.” Theobalt had arrived back at the dining hall holding a pen and paper.

I took them and started to write my account of events.

“By the way, Mr. Theobalt, I have a question,” I said casually.

“Please ask.”

“What kind of jobs make a lot of money here?”

His eyes widened, but I stood my ground. I had to make a living. I couldn’t be poor here, too.

* * *

“...so I told her that she could make lots of money by becoming an airship pilot or establishing a fashion brand to sell special outfits for noble ladies or building entertainment facilities,” Theobalt stated.

“Money?”

“Yes. She seems to genuinely like money.”

As usual, there was a stack of letters and gifts going up in flames in the fireplace. Lacius listened to Theobalt’s report while staring at the ashes absentmindedly.

“So, what do you think? Can she be trusted?”

“Well, she didn’t wander around at night to find your bedroom.”

“Have you seen her trying to find a strand of my hair?” the archduke questioned.

“I’ve never once seen her bend over as if she was looking for any. She doesn’t seem particularly interested in you. But money on the other hand...”

“So she only wants money?”

“Yes, it seems like it.”

If true, this was excellent news. Maybe this time...

Lacius’ eyes were as dead as the ashes in the fireplace, but for a moment hope flickered in them.

“Those hair dolls keep arriving,” Theobalt said carefully.

“It’s the princess’s fault. She’s the one who put that superstition in the magazines.”

The dolls that noble ladies had made with their own hair smelled horrible as they burned. The dolls alone weren’t a problem, but according to superstition, adding Lacius’ hair to the doll alongside their own would cause him to fall in love. It had already been three years since the rumor spread, but ladies kept throwing these dolls at his manor. The archduke didn’t receive any mail, except direct ones from the imperial palace. Rather, these dolls were thrown in by hired mages who were able to connect space. Little did they know how damaging it was for the receiver.

“It would be easiest to buy a fake relationship with money. Would ten billion gauts suffice?” the archduke asked.

“I believe so.”

“It would be great if she really isn’t in love with me.”

“Then why not test her?” Theobalt suggested.

“Test her...”

“Yes, she’s from far away, so perhaps she’s unaffected by you.”

Lacius thought about Theobalt’s suggestion. Shaye had left a certainly different first impression from that of the imperial ladies he’d met thus far. But he still couldn’t be too sure. There had been other women who’d sworn to have no feelings for him, but the result was always the same. They’d all become madly obsessed with him. It was bound to happen, as all life was naturally drawn to sunlight. He had the blood of the sun god, and so he was destined to be loved by all, especially so by women.

However, he had to suffer far more than his ancestors, as people’s attention only grew more and more intense. After he’d inherited the title of archduke upon his father’s passing, it became impossible to have a proper life, probably because he hadn’t married quickly enough.

“It wouldn’t be bad to test her. I’ll consider this my last chance.”

“Who knows? Perhaps Maynard and I will soon have an archduchess to serve.”