How To Survive As a Villain on the Verge of Death

She thought this was a possibility. Could it be that Sorel and the Emperor were planning to frame her? Still, she was afraid that Sorel would try to harm her by harming herself, so she put that thought aside. The Sorel she saw in the original was truly an angel-like person.

 

“If I fall down after being stabbed by a dagger, who will people suspect? Of course it’s Eve.”

 

However, Sorel, who appeared in the prophecy, smiled sweetly like candy and announced an evil plan.

 

“This plan can’t fail, so you don’t have to worry.”

 

It felt like the credibility of the original work had completely disappeared.

 

‘Why is Sorel doing this?’

 

Was she blaming Eve that much? To the point where she didn’t mind harming herself? Or was it just to receive recognition and compensation from the Emperor? Whatever it was, there was no time to delve into Sorel’s psychology right now. Because a new crisis was right in front of them.

 

The new prediction ended with Sorel’s confident smile. As soon as she returned to reality, she quickly fell out of the Emperor’s arms.

 

“Then I will return to the temple now.”

 

The Emperor, the source of all this, held her hand as if he were regretful.

 

“I wanted to keep you by my side until you got married, but I feel sad.”

 

Although he spoke so kindly, his eyes seemed to be checking how much she knew. Now that things have come to this point, the Emperor must think she knew his original plan to assassinate Eve.

 

‘You must be thinking that I was so shocked by that story that I changed.’

 

Because her actions now would be very different from those of the past.

 

“I will come to the palace often even after marriage, so don’t worry, father.”

 

“Then. That’s how it should be.”

 

The Emperor smiled regretfully and let go of her hand. She concentrated until the Emperor’s hand fell. But nothing was seen anymore. She gave up her feeling of regret and left the office. She felt the eyes of the Emperor and Siren looking at her closely until she closed the door and left. As soon as she left the office, she hugged Bayan and returned to the banquet hall.

 

As she entered the banquet hall, she saw Terence surrounded by nobles.

 

“Princess, have you finished your walk?”

 

“Yes, I went out and came back and I was tired. Let’s go back.”

 

“Princess, you’re already going back…”

 

The nobles who were with Terence tried to talk to her, but when they saw her serious expression, they hesitated and backed away. Terence ignored them and took her outside. As soon as the servant summoned Nell, they immediately got into the carriage.

 

“I saw the Emperor.”

 

She started by explaining the scene she saw when she touched the Emperor. Terence spoke as if he had already guessed it.

 

“As expected, that was the plan. I expected this from the moment I saw this sword.”

 

The storage case containing the sword of Ionis was placed on her lap. She thought that too the moment she received this sword. The only unexpected part was that Sorel volunteered to be the stabber herself.

 

[What I heard was similar.]

 

Bayan also spoke in more detail about what he heard in his office. The conversation he saw and heard between the Emperor and Bayan. Combining the two made this plan seem a little more concrete. To sum up, on the day of the wedding, Sorel would steal this dagger and summon Eve to the greenhouse. Before she got to Sorel, she was stabbed and fell bleeding. Eve would arrive late and be accused of being the culprit.

 

…In some ways, it seems like a simple plan.

 

“Who is stabbing Sorel with this?”

 

Sorrel was stabbed in the back of her shoulder, a wound he couldn’t inflict on her own.

 

“The Emperor will not be able to go in person, so if you exclude him, the crown prince, and the princess, the only person left is the second prince.”

 

If it were Vilos, he could easily have participated in this plan.

 

“Wouldn’t that be too dangerous? If he does something wrong, Vilos could be accused of being the culprit.”

 

It may not be the imperial palace, but the location was the Grand Duke’s mansion. If anyone sees Vilos passing near the greenhouse, he too will jump on board. In particular, Vilos had a history of fighting with Sorel some time ago.

 

“That’s true.”

 

At that time, Bayan, who was listening to them, pointed to the storage box.

 

[What does the sword look like?]

 

She opened the locker with the key she received. As soon as she opened the lid, Bayan shouted as if he was happy to see it.

 

[Ah, it is the sword of love.]

 

“…what? What sword?”

 

[Sword of love. You don’t know?]

 

“What is that?”

 

Bayan looked at her puzzled face and opened his small mouth slightly as if he was dumbfounded.

 

[… It was said that you grew up in the imperial palace, and your younger brother, the blonde, grew up among commoners.]

 

“Yes, that’s right.”

 

[Are you sure? Haven’t the two changed?]

 

“…”

 

Did this mean that she was so ignorant that he couldn’t believe that she grew up in the imperial palace? Seeing the arrogant professor-like expression made her miss the small cat she saw earlier. He was really cute when he was a kitten.

 

She turned the question to Terence.

 

“Terence, do you know that this is the sword of love?”

 

Terence frowned as if wondering if she was saying something strange.

 

“The sword of love?”

 

“Look at this. Not even someone with the title of Grand Duke knows.”

 

Bayan seemed a little confused by both of their reactions.

 

[Of course the Grand Duke will not know. Because he is not from the Albion family. However, the direct descendants of the family know.]

 

“I didn’t hear anything. I was only told that I couldn’t use it unless I was a direct member of the royal family.”

 

Bayan was lost in thought for a moment with a small face, then nodded his head as if he realized something.

 

[It would be easy to deceive if no one knew.]

 

“What do you mean?”

 

[This is not something that only the royal family can use.]

 

Bayan pointed the blade with his front paw.

 

[Read what is written on the back.]

 

She turned the sword over. The letters she saw earlier were still clearly written there.

 

‘Only those with the blood and heart of the Albion family can use this sword.’

 

[The blood and heart of the Albion family.]

 

Bayan had a serious expression on his small face.

 

[This is literally true. Anyone who has the blood and heart of a direct descendant of Albion can use this sword.]

 

After listening to the explanation, a shocking realization came to her.

 

She asked in astonishment.

 

“Do you really mean that all you have to do is kill a direct descendant, take out their blood and heart, and keep it?”

 

[…No, this requires descendants to be alive, so such a terrible and disgusting method is impossible.]

 

Bayan looked surprised at how she could come up with such a bizarre idea. Since she didn’t know the condition that descendants must be alive, she thought it was natural.

 

[But there is another way. It is to gain the blood and hearts of living descendants.]

 

“Winning my heart?”

 

[In ancient language, heart meant love or sincerity.]

 

Bayan patted his chest with his small paw and continued his explanation calmly.

 

[If the person who has won the heart of a direct descendant, that is, the lover, grabs this sword with a little of that descendant’s blood on his or her hands, the blade will not disappear.]

 

“Is that really true?”

 

One with blood and heart. It makes sense if this heart means the heart. If the person who occupies the ‘heart’, or affection, of the descendant got a little ‘blood’ on his or her hands, the condition of ‘blood and heart’ was achieved. She explained it to Terence as well. He too was surprised to hear the explanation.

 

“This sword is famous for the legend surrounding the death of Princess Ionis, but I never thought that blood and heart had such a meaning.”

 

“I guess it was probably a secret from the imperial family.”

 

If it had been kept secret for hundreds of years, it would be reasonable for no one to know about it today. In the past, it was only known to members of the imperial family, but at some point, it was only known to the Emperor and his successors.

 

[If you check, it will be clear…]

 

Bayan looked at the two of them and paused for a moment to say something.

 

[…Hmm, you may not be able to confirm, but in any case, if your direct descendant is someone you truly love, he will be able to use this sword.]

 

Even if they pretended, they were not really in love, so it wouldn’t work out. Terence seemed to notice that Bayan was talking about him.

 

“What does Shinsu say?”

 

“…I was just saying that we couldn’t identify this sword.”

 

Because they were not real lovers. To be precise, it meant that he couldn’t use this because she didn’t really love Terence.

 

Terence’s eyes became cold for a moment, as if he understood what she meant. For an instant, a cold, cold light appeared in his purple eyes. What, why was he reacting like that? She was sure he was not upset because she didn’t love him. But he was still afraid that she, or rather, Eve, might even like him.

 

[Chuck.]

 

In the uncomfortable atmosphere, the sound of Bayan clearing his throat was heard.

 

[In the past, spouses of the royal family would sometimes touch this sword to confirm their affection.]

 

Bayan continued his explanation with a bewildered look that seemed to recall his old memories.

 

[…Because of that, a lot of discord arose between couples and lovers.]

 

“It makes sense.”

 

If you hold a sword with blood on it and the blade disappears, it means that the other person did not truly love you. If you make a mistake, won’t the couple’s relationship be ruined that day? Anyway, thanks to that, she found out some important information.

 

“Then it means that the Empress can also use this dagger.”

 

The only woman the Emperor truly loved. Maybe he designed this plan with the Empress in mind from the beginning? As of now, no one knew the information Bayan told them. If it was the Empress, she could stab Sorel without anyone suspecting her.

 

“Maybe that’s why he asked the Empress to hold the sword at the banquet. He wanted to show everybody that the Empress couldn’t use this sword.”

 

“I think the same thing. That may be why she showed the sword right then and there.”

 

If it weren’t for Bayan, she wouldn’t have suspected the Empress at all. If she hadn’t seen the foresight, she wouldn’t have paid particular attention to this sword. They probably checked to see if there was anything suspicious, but if they didn’t find anything, they would have just put it in a storage box and locked it up.

 

She asked, looking at the sword.

 

“Sorel senses the holy power, so maybe she can easily find out where this is?”

 

Bayan was afraid because his holy power was weak. Even though she didn’t know it, this dagger looked like it had strong holy power just by looking at it. Bayan also agreed with her guess.

 

[If you are close enough, the blonde will be able to find you.]

 

That’s why Sorel was so confident that he could steal the sword.

 

“Maybe there are more keys.”

 

“Maybe so.”

 

The plan to become a bridesmaid failed, but if Sorel had another key and could sense the sword’s location, he would easily steal it. She would be so busy on her wedding day that she wouldn’t even have time to supervise the luggage being moved.

 

“Now that you know the plan, how will you respond?”

 

Terence asked her. She could see a dark hillside outside the window. The carriage was already passing near the temple.

 

“Actually, I tried to block this plan at first.”

 

Because she wanted to hold the wedding safely somehow. Even now, if she put her mind to it, she could foil the plan. All she had to do was hide this dagger somewhere far away from the mansion.

 

“But I’m concerned about the second plan.”

 

A second plan prepared by the Emperor in case Sorel failed. What was the plan? According to Bayan’s explanation, Gairen said that the second plan was more dangerous than the first. There’s still some time, so maybe they could figure out what the second plan was. What if she didn’t find out with her foresight within the remaining time? Even if she has a premonition, she may not be able to grasp the exact details after seeing it once or twice. This time too, she figured out the situation by combining the two predictions and the conversation Bayan overheard.

 

‘I wouldn’t even be able to see the Emperor every day.’

 

If she tried to touch the Emperor at any time, she would arouse suspicion.

 

Terence said quietly when he saw that she was worried.

 

“It is better to bet on a certain hand than to wait for an uncertain hand.”

 

“You mean let’s do it like before.”

 

Just like in the case of the suspicious drug or the fire incident, she pretended not to know anything and let Sorel go ahead with her first plan.

 

‘That’s the best way for now.’

 

Anyway, the Emperor was determined to disrupt this wedding somehow. In that case, Sorel’s plan was better than the second plan, which they hadn’t even figured out yet. Because that would be enough to turn the situation around.

 

“Then I guess I’ll have to prepare in advance this time too.”

 

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