How To Survive As a Villain on the Verge of Death

After washing her body, she only spent time straightening her hair. The plan was to focus only on the hair and then simply finish the makeup and go to the mansion. She was going to go to the mansion, put on a dress, and then put on formal makeup. She put on her going-out dress and overcoat, got into the carriage, and headed to the mansion.

 

“Are you here, Her Royal Highness?”

 

The mansion was already busy and busy. As soon as she arrived, she went up to the inner room. Inside the boudoir, everyone was busy, including the maids organizing her luggage and Nell and Chloe helping her get dressed. The only idle creature was Bayan.

 

Bayan was lying on the sofa and slowly got up after she finished putting on her makeup. She pretended to pet Bayan and spoke to him.

 

“I’m sorry, it’s really hard, isn’t it?”

 

Bayan ignored the people and gave her a short answer.

 

[I’m fine. I was just tired after channeling my holy energy.]

 

It was said that Bayan had used up all but the minimum sacred power needed to sustain life. Nell, who was fixing her dress, saw them talking and she smiled.

 

“It looks like Bayan is responding to the princess’s words when she’s meowing.”

 

“I know…”

 

She was glad that Bayan’s words still sound like cat sounds to other people. Because no one would look strange even if she exchanged words with him openly like this. While Nell and Chloe were looking away from taking out the dress and fixing it, she held Bayan in her arms and whispered softly in his ear.

 

“Thank you. I’ll give you some power after work is done.”

 

Bayan looked at her, nodded his head slightly, and then she walked out of the hallway. Meanwhile, the maids also packed up their belongings and went out.

 

“Princess, I have finished taking care of your dress.”

 

After checking her makeup and hair, she was about to put on her dress. The maid knocked on the door of the boudoir.

 

“Princess, Princess Sorel has arrived.”

 

There’s still a long way to go before the wedding begins, but was she already here?

 

“Ask her to come in.”

 

Sorel, dressed in gray clothes like a priest’s uniform, came inside. Four days ago, she was wearing the same clothes she saw in the preview. Sorel smiled her bright smile as she approached Eve.

 

“It’s a little early, but… I wanted to give you a wedding gift in advance.”

 

“Wedding Gift?”

 

Sorel motioned to her maid who followed her. Her maid gave Eve a small gift box. She opened the box and inside was a soft ivory-colored veil. The veil was made of thin cotton thread and was full of flowers embroidered with light pink thread. They were all Rastana flowers.

 

“It’s a veil embroidered with Rastana flowers. It means wishing for a happy married life. I made it myself.”

 

“You made it?”

 

Even at a glance, the flowers embroidered on the veil are of high quality. Even if she ordered it from the wardrobe, she would have believed it. Everyone here has amazing embroidery skills. Inside the box was also a gold pin to secure the veil to the head. The small, thin gold pin also had white flower petals made of pearls attached to it.

 

“Thank you. It’s a truly thoughtful gift.”

 

She looked touched and put the veil back in the box.

 

“Sorel.”

 

Then she gently took Sorel’s hand.

 

“Though a lot has happened between us. Thank you so much for coming to bless my marriage.”

 

She moved her lips as if hesitating for a moment and then continued.

 

“I know it’s a selfish wish, but from now on I want to be like real sisters with you. I want to help you with anything you need.”

 

It was only for a moment, but she felt the hand she was holding twitch for a moment. However, the look of agitation disappeared in an instant. Sorel said, crying with an expression of emotion.

 

“I want to do that too.”

 

When she saw that face, she was convinced. She had a vain hope that she would change her mind for a moment.

 

‘The result has become clear.’

 

Today’s work would proceed as planned. Eve smiled, feeling a mixture of relief and disappointment.

 

“Then I’m going to put on my dress and go downstairs.”

 

“Yes, I will go down first.”

 

Sorel let go of her hand and went out with her maid. Nell and Chloe dressed her in a wedding dress. After putting on her dress, she headed downstairs to the bridal suite. They said the bride should not be seen in public until the ceremony begins. Because of such a strange custom, they had to go down the narrow back stairs without being noticed.

 

Diane was waiting for her downstairs. As soon as Diane saw her, she was so moved that she had tears in her eyes.

 

“Princess, you are truly beautiful.”

 

It’s not that pretty.  Well, Diane was the one who worked the hardest for this wedding. She seemed to have put a lot of effort into it and was moved by her finished work.

 

“Don’t worry about preparing for the ceremony. I came early and checked everything!”

 

“I see. Thank you very much.”

 

Diane said she had been here before Eve and she had been touring the mansion and checking out the arrangements.

 

“No. I’m glad I could be of help.”

 

Diane was truly happy. Maybe because she was in a good mood, her complexion looked good today. Now that she thought about it, she noticed that Diane’s dress looked much nicer than what she had seen before.

 

Snacks such as muffins and cookies, as well as cool drinks, were prepared in the waiting room.

 

“Have you had breakfast? I’m hungry. Should I ask for some food? Nell and Chloe, you haven’t eaten anything either, have you?”

 

“We are okay.”

 

“I’m sure you’re still hungry.”

 

“Oh, then shall we have some of this?”

 

Diane handed muffins and drinks to Nell and Chloe. Despite what she said, all three of them must have been very hungry so they grabbed the muffins and ate them eagerly. When she saw that, she felt hungry too. Actually, she haven’t eaten anything since dawn.

 

“Can I have some muffins too?”

 

However, an unexpectedly violent reaction came back.

 

“No!”

 

“It’s not possible.”

 

“Never.”

 

Nell, Chloe, and even Diane were all strongly opposed.

 

“Why-why?”

 

Why were they opposing it so vehemently? Did she mistakenly say that she was tired and wanted a drink instead of eating a muffin?

 

“What if you eat wrong and your face gets swollen?”

 

“…Eating one muffin won’t make my face swell.”

 

Since she was so tired and lost some weight, she thought it might be okay to swell a little.

 

“The bride eats this.”

 

Nell took out a white square loaf of bread hidden in the corner and handed it to her. It was a small, flat bread that looked like tofu and was about the size of a card.

 

“What is this?”

 

“It is a nutritious food that is easily digested.”

 

Diane explained why she needed to eat this kind of tofu.

 

“It’s your wedding day, so you’re tired and nervous. In this case, if you eat the wrong food, you may get sick. You might get an upset stomach. So, I’m giving you just a little bit of this.”

 

“Well, I see.”

 

She wasn’t as nervous as she could pretend to be, but she was nervous in her own way. Because today was not just an ordinary wedding day. As Nell adjusted her dress, she spoke as if to comfort her.

 

“Eating that will cheer you up.”

 

Was this some kind of energy bar? She took a bite of the white bread that Nell handed her. There was no taste whatsoever. The tofu tasted like tofu, but it just tasted like bland porridge. She was sure if she ate something like this, she would feel hungry all day long. But she could still eat healthy food at the reception, right?

 

It’s the menu she chose, but it didn’t mean she couldn’t eat anything, right? It was when she finished snack time and was checking her makeup. A maid came inside and she said something in Chloe’s ear.

 

“Princess.”

 

Chloe gave her a meaningful look.

 

“Excuse me for a moment.”

 

She immediately got up and went outside. The area near the waiting room was very quiet, perhaps because of the custom of not being seen by people. Chloe spoke after entering the narrow room next to the hallway.

 

“Princess Sorel has visited the boudoir. She is missing one of her hairpins from her veil, and she wants to get it back before the Princess finds out.”

 

My God. That’s why she gave her a gift in advance. She made that excuse to go into the inner room and come back.

 

“Where are you now?”

 

“They say she came out of the boudoir and went down to the banquet hall.”

 

She went back up to the boudoir with Chloe. When she returned, the interior looked the same as when she left. She went straight to the dresser in the bedroom. When she was organizing her luggage, she had them put the dagger here in advance.

 

She opened the drawer and removed the box on top. She could see the dagger storage box stored deep in the dresser. She opened the locker with the key she had on her. However, contrary to expectations that it would be empty, the familiar pink dagger was still inside.

 

‘Is the dagger still there?’

 

She reached out and grabbed the handle of the sword. Even when taken out of the storage box, the sharp blade did not disappear. It would be natural since Eve was a direct royal family member. She looked around, but the dagger looked the same as when she checked it last night.

 

‘No, that can’t be possible.’

 

Apparently Sorel didn’t change her mind when they met just moments ago.

 

“Chloe.”

 

She held out the dagger to Chloe.

 

“Hold this.”

 

Without saying anything, Chloe grabbed the dagger she handed her. The moment she handed the sword into Chloe’s hand and removed her fingers, she swallowed dry saliva and kept her eyes on the blade. However, there was no change in the blade. The sharply sharpened blade was still glowing pink in Chloe’s hands. Only then did she know what had happened.

 

“It’s fake.”

 

Sorel stole the real sword and put in a fake sword that looked exactly like it.

 

* * *

 

Sorel stood at the entrance and looked into the banquet hall. There was still time until the wedding, so there were very few people in the banquet hall. Instead, the entire ceremony hall was filled with flowers. It was a flower prepared a few days before for the wedding. The banquet hall here was much larger and more luxurious than the temple. It seemed like it would be a very grand wedding. An unforgettable wedding that would remain in everyone’s memories forever.

 

“Princess.”

 

A familiar silver-haired man next to her called out to her.

 

“Mikhail. Are you here already?”

 

“I came here to check the surroundings in advance. The princess also came early.”

 

“I came because I wanted to give my sister a wedding present.”

 

Mikhail looked a little worried when he heard that.

 

“Did you have a good conversation?”

 

Ever since Sorel returned here, Mikhail seemed to have hoped for a reconciliation between the two. During the conversation, he even quietly said nice things about Eve.

 

“Sure. It went well.”

 

“Thank god.”

 

“I guess my sister is in a good mood because it’s her wedding day. I’ve never seen her so happy.”

 

What she added was a lie. People thought that Sorel met Eve for the first time when she came to the imperial palace, but in fact, she had seen Eve twice before. Once in Jedo Square. Another time at the temple. The young princess, smiling brightly in a luxurious dress, looked brighter and more beautiful than flowers.

 

“Mikhail also said that my sister seems to have changed a lot. That’s how I see it.”

 

In fact, it was a little strange to say that she had simply changed. These days, Eve seemed like a different person, from her actions, gestures, and facial expressions. But she couldn’t be anyone else. The holy power she felt from Eve was the same now as it was before.

 

“Has my sister really changed? I don’t know if that’s possible.”

 

Mikhail hesitated for a moment, then he answered.

 

“You might think it’s foolish, but I believe that people can change.”

 

A shy smile flashed across Mikhail’s neat eyes. Not long ago, he used to make that look when talking about Eve. Sorel concealed his displeasure and smiled.

 

“I don’t think Mikhail is stupid.”

 

Because people could really change. But in a bad way.

 

Mikhail asked Sorel’s understanding and turned around.

 

“I have to go again. I’ll see you after the ceremony.”

 

“Okay, see you later.”

 

Sorel, who was left alone, stood still at the end of the hallway and watched Mikhail disappear. The Holy Power of the Albion family was getting weaker with each successive generation. But the royal family did not want this fact to be known. The holy power possessed by the princesses was the clearest evidence that the Albion family was superior to other families. It was the driving force behind the Albion family ruling the empire in the past. Therefore, the daughter who was born from a lowly woman and had weak holy power was nothing more than a stain that had to be hidden and erased. But Eve was different. 

Even though she had similar holy powers, she lived a completely different life. Just because she was the legitimate daughter, born from the body of the Empress. Only because of that, the two had completely different childhoods.

 

‘She always gets everything easily.’

 

From the first time she saw Eve, she hated her. People born unlucky like Sorel have to work desperately to pick up even a crumb. She barely managed to pick up the scraps she worked so hard to get and finally made it this far. And yet her older sister was ahead of her again.

 

Sorel looked at the banquet hall filled with colorful flowers and then turned around. In fact, she no longer had to worry about Eve. Because Sorel herself had what he wanted. When she first heard about this plan, she honestly wanted to reject it. But the moment she returned to the capital and saw this mansion and the Grand Duke, Sorel made up her mind.

 

Her sister did nothing again and she got all this.

 

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