her, and finally, my childhood fiancé.
The seeds of jealousy were planted in my heart. As the daughter of the Sterling family, I was destined to fight her to the bitter end.
At first, I tried to resist. I demanded to know why the System had made me this person.
The System’s voice was cold.
[Host, this is your role as a character in the novel.]
[There can only be one heroine. If you do not fight, you will always be at her mercy}
[I imagine that once the heroine awakens to her identity, she will also use every means to suppress you.]
[After all, you are not the heroine, yet you enjoy the heroine’s treatment. She will not tolerate that.]
Of
my adopted brot-
Controlled by the System, I began my life as a villainess. The System gave me missions to make things difficult for Rhea. I had to mock her for her cheap clothes in
front of everyone. After completing the mission, my conscience would ache, and I’d secretly give my new clothes to Mrs. Wallace, vaguely saying I didn’t like them anymore and asking her to dispose of them.
A week later, the dress would appear on Rhea.
I would watch from the shadows, seeing her shine like a princess in the sunlight. Rhea looks so much better in white dresses, I would think with pride, as silent tears streamed down my face.
The System said that in the future, Rhea would steal my fiancé. I had to get engaged to Christian before that happened. So, like a puppet, I forced my parents to arrange an engagement party. The System deliberately chose the day Christian’s grandfather was critically ill, saying it was the only way to test Christian’s feelings for me.
Christian, of course, did not attend the engagement party.
And I didn’t dare to show up either, afraid to see the disappointment and disgust in his eyes.
I tried to find ways to make it up to him, but compared to what I had done, my efforts seemed pathetic.
I couldn’t live like that anymore. I didn’t want to become the person they all hated.
I tried to
You a
erminate the mission, but all I got was the System’s cold refusal.
dre a.
supporting ter
. You cannot termin
the
Sion.]
I in constant fear, until one day,
As my body hit th
e ground, I had only on
A sense of relief. I could finally rest.
Ia step on the library stairs.
H
[Mission cannot be terminated. Host, your progre
[Please restart.]
[Please restart.]
[The deadline is..J
The System’s voice droned on in my head.
2
already
delayed due to
fell to my knees, screaming, “I don’t want to do any more missions!”
Suddenly, I was pulled into a warm embrace.
The sweet scent of citrus filled my nose.
The world went quiet.
The System’s voice in my head abruptly cut off, as if someone had pulled the plug.
Rhea was holding me, patting my back over and over, her voice a low, soothing murmur.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. We’re done with the missions.”
Her jaw was tight, her voice strained.
“I didn’t know… I’m sorry… It’s all my fault…”
As Rhea held me, her sleeve became damp with my tears.
T
“Rhea?” I froze, then frantically pushed her away. The System had warned me that if it caught me acting out of character, I would
“It’s okay-” she grabbed my wrist, refusing to let go.
She comforted me awkwardly.
“The game is over,” she said, her voice low and steady.
be
punished
I sat in Rhea’s dorm roorn. It was just the two of us.
She poured me a glass of water.
“So you were bound to a mission too? You knew you were the heroine of this book?” I asked, frowning as I held the glass.
Rhea looked down, her voice soft. “But I didn’t know that the price of being the heroine was forcing you to be the villainess.”
“The System only told me that I was bound to the heroine’s identity, that I could climb my way up from the bottom.”
“I lied to me, told me that everyone around me was treacherous, that the only person I could trust was myself.”
“The only person I could rely on was myself.”
A dead silence fell over the room.
“So when you targeted me, when you made things difficult for me, I could tolerate it.”
“I thought, you’ve been pampered your whole life. It’s normal for you to get angry or jealous when you hear some unpleasant rumors
“Even when you became more aggressive, in my eyes, you were just a little girl afraid of losing her parents‘ love.”
“But I never imagined you were being forced.”
headded “I have no feelings for Christian
09:11
Chapter 2
“But I never imagined you were being forced.”
“Oh,
don’t
I looked down,
worry,”
using the
added. “I have no feelings for Christian.”
pretense of drinking water to hide
my reddened eyes.
“I wasn’t jealous…”
“You were always better than me,” I said
fly.”
“Mrs. Wallace raised you well. I was happy
“We were childhood friends. Even though we
en r
my
Rhea didn’t speak. But her lowered eyelasadn’t s
Suddenly, I remembered something. “Wait, what
et and smart, well–read and sincere.”
did.
‘You
mean
the
“Exactly what it sounds like,” Rhea said casually. “I terminated
for
I know
- ou. I wouldn’t misjudge you.”
e game was over?”
“The villainess can’t terminate the mission. But I can.”
I was stunned. “But if you do that, everything you’ve worked
for…”
“Society is always trying to pit women against each other.”
doesn’t matter,” Rhea laughed. “Is my life over just because I’m not bound
to
this System?”
“But I’m just not playing along.”
09:11
After that day, Rhea’s luck seemed to take a turn for the worse. She always just missed out on winning competitions, and she almost didn’t get paid for her part–time job. In the end, Derek had to step in and beat the boss into a pulp.
On the day Rhea finished her internship, I was at home cooking; waiting for them to come back for dinner.
I was busy in the kitchen with Mrs. Wallace. When Derek and the others tried to help, I shooed them out, leaving only Christian to assist me.
“Dinner will be ready soon. Don’t come in here and make a mess.”
Rhea and Derek sat on the sofa, watching the busy figures in the kitchen.
Derek cleaned his ear nonchalantly. “I don’t know why she’s like this now, but it’s nice.”
The innocent, kind Flora from their childhood–they could never believe she would actually turn bad. The only explanation was that she’d been possessed by somet- hing evil.
Rhea raised an eyebrow. “If you like her, why don’t you confess?”
Derek was stumped. “…If I like money, why don’t I rob a bank? Is it because I don’t want to?”
Rhea just scoffed.
Derek: “I always thought you were strange too. Why do you like hanging around my house so much?”
Rhea sipped her water. “It’s not because of you.”
Derek yawned. “…I’m self–aware enough to know that.”
He sighed again. “But if you don’t date, don’t your parents pressure you?”
Rhea rose slowly. “Not every relationship in this world has to end in romance. You should know that better than anyone.”
“Besides, you’re not dating either, are you?”
This time, it was Derek’s turn to laugh.
“Of course not.”
“After all, we have a bond that’s lasted more than a decade. That’s not something a stranger can just come in and replace in a few months or years.”
Their eyes met, filled with a shared understanding, the camaraderie of two people in the same boat.
“Dinner’s ready-”
Flora emerged from the kitchen, a cheerful smile on her face, carrying a tray of food.
“Rhea, Christian, big bro, and Mrs. Wallace and Mr. Evans–I made everyone’s favorite dishes!”
Rhea and Derek exchanged a glance and smiled helplessly.
Oh well.
Flora
emerged from the kitchen, a cheerful smile on her face, carrying a
La tray
of food.
everyone’s favorite dishes!”
“Rhea, Christian, ,big bro, and Mrs. Wallace and Mr. Evans–Im made
Rhea
and Derek exchanged a glance and smiled helplessly.
Oh well.
What could they
do?
All they
could do was pray that Christian had a long life ahead of him,
so the
opportunity wouldn’t t fall into their hands.
And
this kind of relationship… wasn’t that its own kind of happy, complete reunion?
