Chapter 8
My Villainess, I Missed You
Daphne knew that Psyche biting her lip and lowering her gaze was a form of protest.
That meant the brief moment their eyes met wasn’t just Daphne’s imagination. It also meant the person Psyche had been searching for was none other than Daphne.
Apparently, the lack of contact between them had truly gotten under Psyche’s skin.
“We were bound to run into each other anyway. Why bother wasting paper and manpower?
Romeo adorned in a navy suit with faint white stripes, accessorized with a sapphire pin matching Psyche’s eyes.
“I’ll give credit, he wears clothes well.”
Psyche, hiding just behind him, wore an off-shoulder dress made of the same fabric as Romeo’s suit. Her look was completed with a simple topaz necklace, and her golden hair was tied in a half-up style with a large ribbon. The shimmering hem of her dress swayed gracefully as she moved, giving her an even more sophisticated air.
“Who would ever guess she came from humble background?”
When Psyche’s village and family were wiped out, she had shaken off despair in just two days. Storming into the hotel where Romeo was staying, she had audaciously proposed an engagement.
Her terms? Total devotion to him in bed—anytime, anywhere, as much as he wanted!
She even offered marriage and heirs if necessary, with one bold condition: she would never love him.
Since she wouldn’t love him, she promised not to be hurt by whomever or whatever he chose to do. All she asked was for his protection from a certain mad prince.
“Still such a fiery deal when you think about it.”
And yes, that mad prince happened to be the very same “esteemed guest” currently holed up in Daphne’s home.
In any case, Psyche had just as much pride as Daphne. She would never bow her head for something she didn’t do wrong. If anything, she’d flee before she ever begged for attention.
Daphne deliberately kept her gaze locked on Psyche, propping her chin on her arm as she leaned against the railing.
“Let’s see how long you can avoid looking back at me.”
Eventually, Romeo left with a group of VIPs. Psyche, finally back in Daphne’s line of sight, had donned her perfect crown princess mask.
She smiled gracefully at those who greeted her, flawlessly playing the part of the evening’s leading lady, before exiting the hall with Stella a short while later.
“Why isn’t Misha here?”
Still, Psyche never looked back. Daphne clicked her tongue softly, straightening her back.
“Leaving your famously lonely boss alone this long? Maybe I should put you on unpaid overtime.”
If Misha could hear her thoughts, he’d grind his teeth and call her a lunatic boss.
Daphne began stepping backward, planning to sit down and concoct an excuse to leave early under the pretense of feeling unwell.
“Whoa, damn it!”
She startled, letting out a curse as she felt something hard hit the sole of her shoe. Because she didn’t sense anyone coming behind her, she thought she had stepped on a ghost’s foot.
What kind of nonsense curse is that? And where did you pick up such foul language?”
Just as Daphne turned to apologize, the supposed ghost wrapped an arm around her waist and effortlessly lifted her onto his lap.
“Let go.”
Daphne glared at the rude pervert now holding her, her face scrunched in distaste.
“It’s been a while, my villainess.”
It was Romeo Rodriguez.
“My, what? Are you crazy?”
“I missed you.”
It had been a long time since she had seen him up close like this since their childhood. But she wasn’t glad at all.
His stark black hair and piercing yellow eyes stood out so sharply they made her want to pluck them out and sell them.
“Did you get shot in the head?”
“Cousin, are you trying to distance yourself from me? How heartbreaking.”
Let’s be clear: Romeo was terrifyingly handsome. Even with his lips downturned in a pout and a hurt expression on his face, the icy aura emanating from his striking features was impossible to hide.
“His Highness Romeo Alexio Issuin… de Rodriguez, Crown Prince. Let me go. There are way too many eyes watching us.”
She vaguely remembered there being a couple more names in his full title, but it had been so long she’d forgotten. Glancing nervously around, Daphne saw Romeo smirk.
“This corner is so tucked away that unless you look closely, you won’t see it.”
”
What’s with you? We agreed not to meet again unless absolutely necessary.”
“I was trying to honor that.”
Daphne, who had no interest in touching any man’s chest other than Celestian’s, pressed her index finger against Romeo’s collarbone, shoving him slightly. She managed to lower one leg to the floor.
As Daphne tried to lift herself from Romeo’s lap, he smirked crookedly and yanked her waist back down, holding her firmly.
“Are you out of your damn mind?”
While Daphne was caught off guard, Romeo leaned in close and whispered in her ear in a voice so low it sent a chill down her spine.
“I hear you’ve been up to some entertaining antics while I’ve been away. My villainess, Daphne Serenade Beaucater.”
It sent shivers down her spine, as if she had been caught red-handed stealing a land ownership certificate from her father’s safe when she was a child, even though she hadn’t done anything wrong.
*****
Daphne had an uncomfortable meeting with her cousin on the terrace. She put on a nonchalant expression, sitting on the white stone railing with her arms crossed.
Romeo, seated to her left, casually brushed off his slightly rumpled suit jacket. Despite having initiated the physical contact earlier, he now looked disgusted at the fact that they’d touched.
“When did you buy out the Duchy’s newspaper?”
“Straight to the point. What a bastard.”
Daphne barely managed to suppress a scowl.
“What isn’t for sale if you have the money? I even acquired B-Grade Gossip Ladies. How’s the public sentiment there? Would they grant asylum too?”
The Duchy of Herbon was well-known for its leniency, often granting asylum to the wrongfully accused who had been exiled from neighboring countries.
“Besides, what’s a crime here doesn’t necessarily count as one there.”
By playing up themes like “unfortunate,” “falsely accused,” and “abandoned,” the newspapers had likely succeeded in painting Celestian as a pitiable figure in the eyes of Herbon’s public.
Now, all he needed to do was board a ship, claim the title of “Grand Duke of Theriosa,” and settle somewhere far away.
“Secradion’s Beaucater, rescued traitors out of ‘love’?”
Romeo let out a soft laugh, turning to look at Daphne directly.
Inside, he’d been all smiles. But now, with his expression drained of warmth and his sharp gaze fixed on her, Daphne’s mood soured further.
“You knew, so why act surprised?”
“I didn’t think you were serious.”
“Seriously? I didn’t know you were that sincere either.”
“What? I didn’t know you were so sincere to Psyche either?”
Romeo reached out, cupping Daphne’s chin between his thumb and forefinger.
“And rescuing Celestian part of our original plan?”
“That was before he committed treason.”
Daphne grimaced as she pushed away Romeo’s rude hand that was turning her chin.
“What’s there to worry about? I’ve clipped the Prince wings and bound his legs.”
During his trial, Celestian had spilled everything, naming every family involved in the rebellion. Many knights and soldiers had been executed, and those complicit were publicly shamed in the kingdom’s newspapers. Some names had even been scrubbed from the records entirely.
“That should be punishment enough, right?”
The only remaining potential threat was Theriosa, who was now under 24/7 surveillance and essentially sold off to Daphne for safekeeping. As long as Daphne vouched for him, escape was impossible.
“Oh, so that’s your thing?”
“What’s my thing?”
“How exactly did you clip the Prince wings? Can I see?”
“Not literally, you lunatic. You’re banned from coming within a hundred kilometers of my estate.”
Romeo, always polite enough to call his half-brother “Prince”, had started playing polo, squash, and even gambling with Daphne on a weekly basis ever since their partnership began.
You still call him Your Highness Celestian, I see.”
Knowing Romeo, whose humor was steeped in malice, it was no doubt a form of mockery.
Thinking about Celestian, with his golden hair and foolish grin, made Daphne feel a pang of longing. She tapped her cheek idly with her fingernail.
“Calling him a traitor is too good for him. Ah, should I call him a bastard?”
Daphne flinched at Romeo’s precise pronunciation of ‘bastard.’
That idiot, who had slept soundly in a drafty, half-destroyed room, had recently caught such a severe cold that his nose and cheeks had turned bright red. He’d collapsed in the hallway on his way to lunch and was now occupying a second bedroom, miserably coughing away.
“I can’t argue with that. In any case, you don’t need to worry—there’s no one left around him.”
Daphne scratched her cheek and smiled.
“No one left around him?”
“Yeah.”
Romeo, who had been absentmindedly touching his chin with his gloved hand, chuckled softly as he made a whistling sound.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Our cousin, you act like you know how everything’s going to end, yet you always take the long way around instead of the easy path.”
Daphne was perplexed.
“Isn’t that coming from you?”
After all, regretful male lead was practically Romeo’s middle name.
“Well, that’s why we’re family, cousin. It’s in our blood—especially this part.”
Romeo’s gaze grew intense as he leaned closer, his golden eyes gleaming even in the dark of night. Daphne, unnerved, flailed her arms and backed up quickly toward the terrace window.
Even as she retreated, Romeo’s eyes bore into her, glowing as if they were emitting their own light.
“What the hell are you saying? Ugh, I hate it. Stop staring. Your eyes are the absolute worst.”
“Feels like looking into a mirror, doesn’t it, dear cousin?”
Daphne shuddered, her words catching in her throat.
“Don’t flatter yourself. For the record, I hate your red hair just as much as you hate my eyes.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
Romeo smirked and shrugged his shoulders.
“Don’t touch the Prince now. He’s mine.”
“When did you even start liking Prince so much? Honestly, I couldn’t understand it, not since you started secretly feeding him gold.”
Romeo had assumed Daphne’s interest in Celestian was casual. What he hadn’t expected was the lengths she’d gone to—selling off mines, buying newspapers across borders, hiring people to wipe out entire families, and fabricating evidence to cover it all.
”
Cousin, I won’t give you too much grief since all those things were necessary anyway. But when are you going to make peace with my wife?”
“My wife? Who? Psyche?”
The overly sweet term of endearment made Daphne wince, wondering if her ears were playing tricks on her.
“Hold on. Did you just say my wife? Oh, my God, you two aren’t even married yet! Who calls someone that? Seriously. Disgusting.”
Since when he became a character who couldn’t move a muscle by the idea of his “wife”? Daphne was genuinely curious.
“So, if Psyche told you to crawl, would you actually do it now?”
If that were the case, Daphne thought, she’d record it and pass the video down through three generations of the Rodriguez family. She suddenly missed the modern technology from her past life.
“I’ve never fought with her. But I’m thinking of picking a fight today. She pushed me to the second floor, remember?”
“I asked Stella to do that, so don’t get the wrong idea.”
“What?”
“I told Stella to do it. I missed you.”
Romeo’s golden eyes softened, their sharp glint fading as his lids lowered into a relaxed, almost serene expression.
