The Villainess Is Too Difficult

Let me say this upfront: I’m not interested in men. Although I’ve been getting more used to a woman’s body, or more precisely, Ariel’s body, over the past few days, I still can’t look directly at my own body while bathing, and I feel a slight resistance when putting on dresses. So, developing an interest in men? Impossible.

I don’t know how the original Ariel behaved. Thanks to the body’s memory, I could easily adapt to etiquette and some knowledge, but I know nothing about how Ariel acted. I couldn’t know from the start.

The original “Chronicle of Arsian” was strictly told from the protagonist’s perspective. Because of that, I can claim to know quite a lot about the protagonist, but I hardly knew anything about Ariel. From the start, Ariel was in the position of a common villainous young lady, so people didn’t even try to know much about her.

Therefore, when I heard the Crown Prince was coming, the first thing I thought about was how to treat him. Should I act like Ariel did in the original work? Impossible. I absolutely can’t do that. The thought of clinging to a man like that makes me want to vomit. I’m just a normal man who likes women. I’m not gay.

But completely ignoring him is also problematic. Because right now, the Crown Prince and Ariel are clearly engaged. Since in the original work, the Crown Prince breaks off the engagement and turns to the protagonist, I need to maintain this relationship even more. To do that, I need to keep some level of connection while maintaining boundaries. But at the same time, I need to make myself somewhat dislikeable so that he can break off the engagement later.

After much deliberation, I concluded that I should greet him as if he were a complete stranger. Even though we’re engaged, if I’m excessively polite, the Crown Prince won’t develop any affection, making it easier to break off the engagement later. Good. What a perfect plan. Although I came up with it myself, it was a very good idea.

But I didn’t expect this situation.

“Answer honestly, Ariel Walpurgis. What on earth happened to you?”

I’m being doubted. He’s doubting whether I’m really Ariel Walpurgis. No, come to think of it, that’s right. From Crown Prince Reinhardt’s perspective, I’m a strange woman whose attitude suddenly changed 180 degrees overnight.

I take back what I said earlier about it being a good idea. My head was stupid.

“Nothing happened, as I told you, Your Highness.”

“Let me add one more thing. You used to call me ‘Lord Reinhardt’ when addressing me. You only called me ‘Your Highness’ like now when I told you to do so.”

Ariel, you idiot! Why didn’t you think more before acting! Unnecessarily creating distance and all that!

“Did you perhaps hit your head?”

I couldn’t immediately answer Reinhardt’s genuine question. Hit my head, huh. That might be better. The contents have completely changed.

But how could I say such a thing? I can’t say it even if my mouth is torn. The moment I say it, the first reaction would be looking at me like I’m crazy, or rather, a crazy woman, and the second would be anger or shock. There’s no need to cause unnecessary commotion.

Then, the only thing that can naturally resolve Reinhardt’s doubt here is… memory loss, damn it. But if I push the memory loss angle, Reinhardt might treat me normally, which could be problematic.

From Reinhardt’s perspective, there are enough reasons to maintain the engagement with me. He can openly receive support from the Walpurgis family.

The Walpurgis family has been loyal to the imperial family for generations. Marrying the daughter of this family is both a reward for the Walpurgis family’s loyalty and a pretext for properly utilizing their power. Unless I make a big mess like the original Ariel, Reinhardt has no particular reason to break off the engagement.

Affection? Why is that necessary? It’s not like there’s any particular flaw in the partner. A political marriage? In noble society, it’s not just common, it’s normal. If I stay like this, Reinhardt might not choose to break off the engagement like in the original work.

‘That can’t happen!’

It absolutely can’t. The protagonist and Reinhardt must end up together. That’s how the protagonist’s power as a saint awakens, and Reinhardt can grab the sword passed down in the imperial family and become a hero. Considering the demon invasion in the future, it’s best for those two to end up together like in the original work.

Moreover… if those two don’t end up together, I’ll inevitably have to marry Reinhardt. Marrying a man? I absolutely can’t! Won’t! Won’t do it no matter what!

Then, what I need to do here is simple. Lower Reinhardt’s affection as much as possible. It would be best to act like the original Ariel if possible… but let’s save that for later, for the very last moment. For now, I’ll go with my own style.

Here, it’s important to speak thoroughly like a duke’s daughter, like a villainess. I decided to use props first.

The fan that the original Ariel often used. Fortunately, Ariel’s ingrained sense could neatly unfold the fan.

I speak while slightly covering my mouth with the fan. It’s one of the basic clichés for a noble young lady.

“Saying I hit my head… how rude to a lady… ugh?!”

No, I was trying to say that.

‘Ow, ow, ow!’

Perhaps because I was trying to say something that doesn’t suit me, my body reacted and I bit my tongue spectacularly. Ugh, I think I even drew blood, it tastes metallic.

“Young Lady?”

“It’s, it’s nothing.”

I waved Muriel away as she tried to approach. I can’t let Reinhardt know my current state. No one would see a duke’s daughter doing such stupid things as a villainess. As naturally as possible, as if nothing happened.

“…I can understand why Lord Reinhardt is suspicious. But I’m in a very good mood today.”

I completed the sentence while trying hard to ignore the pain in my tongue. Ah, damn it. Not only does it hurt, but to be honest, I can’t stand it. On the outside, I might look perfectly like a young lady, but inside, I’m still a man’s soul slowly trying to adapt. If I’m told to act so blatantly like a young lady, I feel like I’m going to cringe.

The way I address my father and brother? To be honest, I can force myself to use those terms of address if I just close my eyes. I can just think of father as father and brother as an older brother. For my usual way of speaking, it’s not like I’m saying things like “oh my” or “ohoho” anyway, I can just think of it as being politely respectful.

But for actions like this, these things that leave no room for escape, I can’t help but hesitate.

“That’s all there is to it.”

To be honest, even covering my mouth with the fan makes me cringe. If I had my way, I’d just fold my arms and cross my legs here, but I can’t because of the facade of being a duke’s daughter. I’ve also been nagged endlessly by Matilda and Muriel about it.

“I see.”

The fortunate thing is that Reinhardt didn’t press any further. Some kind of indecipherable gaze is coming my way, but I don’t need to worry about it for now. What’s important now is how to lower Reinhardt’s affection even more.

“Then, is your business here finished?”

Ah, was that too much? I just wanted him to leave quickly because I need to do something about my tongue soon. If I’m not careful, I might get scolded for my attitude towards royalty. Or would that actually be good?

“Indeed. But since I’m here, I might as well see Duke Walpurgis as well.”

However, unexpectedly, Reinhardt withdrew without resistance. That’s a relief. I’m glad there wasn’t some development like ‘Did you think you could fool me with that?’ or ‘You’ve indeed changed. Who are you?’ It seems I’ve succeeded.

“I’ll send someone to guide you.”

“Understood.”

As Reinhardt put down his empty teacup and stood up, I gave a subtle eye signal to Muriel, who was standing by the door. She nodded as if understanding my intention.

“The tea was good. Then, let’s meet again next time.”

“Yes. Take care on your way.”

Even though he’s my superior, I couldn’t send him off while sitting, so I closed my fan, stood up, and gave a slight bow. He made an unreadable expression before leaving, guided by Muriel.

“Is he gone?”

As the two sets of footsteps faded away, I seized the opportunity to rummage through the desk drawer.

Since I’ve been exercising and handling swords recently, I sometimes get injured, so I’ve kept some first aid supplies in the room. My past self, you did well!

“Ow, ow…”

As I apply the medicine, the pain gradually subsides. Although general pharmaceutical technology here might not even come close to matching modern times, this world has magic and holy power. When these are combined, they can produce items that can put even decent surgery to shame.

“Phew, I’m alive.”

Now that the pain has completely disappeared, I finally relax and slump in the chair, leaning back. If someone saw me, they’d probably severely criticize me for such unrefined behavior, but I had no room for such concerns right now.

“That was tough…”

The meeting with Reinhardt was unsettling in many ways. The possibility that I might completely derail the original story’s route if I’m not careful, the fact that he’s royalty, Ariel’s body automatically behaving politely… It was troublesome in many ways.

But I overcame it. Although I bit my tongue and almost cringed at the uncharacteristic ladylike behavior, I proudly triumphed over all these unreasonable circumstances!

Although I answered vaguely and somehow managed to get through it, at least Reinhardt more or less accepted it and moved on.

Now, during the remaining time, I just need to gradually act like an ill-mannered duke’s daughter, steadily lower Reinhardt’s affection, and hand it over to the protagonist. I just need to keep doing what I’ve been doing. Just keep doing this.

“What else do I need to do before enrollment?”

Nothing particular comes to mind. The prologue of the Chronicle of Arsian is the moment when the protagonist awakens her magical power and is discovered by a passing academy professor, leading to her immediate enrollment decision. That time is probably… a few months away. The academy entrance ceremony is in spring, and there was a description that it was last autumn.

And now, it’s just becoming summer. The entrance exam is in winter.

“There’s still plenty of time.”

Ariel had already submitted her application before I even arrived. The entrance exam is conducted equally regardless of social status, but with Ariel’s power, she should be able to pass it without any problem.

But I’m not satisfied with just that. In the original work, once Ariel entered the academy, she lived as if she had achieved all her goals, dropping her studies and everything else. I have no intention of becoming such an idiot. I need to become as strong as possible.

And while I’m at it, I’ll try to recreate the original story as much as possible. That’s only natural, right?