The Villainess Remembered Me
The villainess remembered me. And so did the saintess. At this point, it was no different from the heavens shoving me toward biting my tongue and dying. I swallowed a soundless sigh and silently followed behind Ibelin. The corridor was quiet, yet my mind was filled with screams tearing in a thousand directions.
> [Ibelin Rosenberg / Affection: 28 / Obsession: 8 / Danger: A]
> [Seraphina Estelle / Affection: 21 / Obsession: 2 / Danger: B]
Looking at the numbers alone, it might seem like I was still in the safe zone. But the most terrifying fact was that these values had accumulated in only three days since possession. In the original story, Ibelin shouldn't even have known the name of a low-ranking butler, and Seraphina had no point of contact with me at all. Yet now both of them had clearly imprinted me in their minds—and their affection had risen to the brink.
“I'm screwed.”
The moment the quiet murmur slipped out, Ibelin, who had been walking ahead, stopped and turned her head.
“What is?”
“……It's nothing, my lady.”
“I clearly heard you.”
Her ears were far too sharp. Ibelin smirked at my troubled expression and resumed walking without hesitation. Her daily routine was the typical schedule of a high-ranking noble daughter: garden walks, reviewing documents, etiquette lessons. The fatal variable was that I, a mere low-ranking servant who wasn't even her personal butler, had to accompany her like a shadow through every movement.
The Rosenberg garden was vast and splendid enough to rival the castle of a minor lord, befitting one of the empire's foremost ducal houses. Ibelin strode arrogantly between the riotously blooming flowers of every hue and the ornate fountains.
“Kyle.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Do you know the name of that flower?”
As a modern person, I shouldn't have known, but the butler's memories etched into my body answered reflexively.
“……The ones with the blue glow are called Lunaria.”
“Correct.”
A flicker of curious surprise crossed Ibelin's golden eyes.
“How unexpected. I didn't think you would be so knowledgeable about botany.”
“As a servant managing the garden, I naturally picked it up.”
“Do you like them?”
“Pardon?”
“I'm asking if you like those flowers.”
Even a trivial question felt like it hid a trap. I swallowed.
“I don't dislike them. I think they're beautiful enough to satisfy a noble's aesthetic sense.”
“What a vague and boring answer.”
Ibelin replied indifferently, yet she didn't seem displeased. She had no way of knowing it was a desperate defense mechanism for survival.
After finishing the walk, Ibelin took the head seat in the gazebo. Maids hurriedly brought tea. As per the rules, I stood at the edge of the gazebo at an appropriate distance—within my master's line of sight but not obstructing it—with my gaze lowered. However, Ibelin's white finger beckoned in the air.
“Kyle, come here.”
“……Yes, my lady.”
When I approached, she gestured with her chin toward the chair opposite her.
“Sit.”
“That's impossible. It would be a breach of family etiquette for a low-ranking servant to sit face-to-face with his superior.”
“Who dares speak of etiquette when I tell you to sit?”
Ibelin's gaze pressed down on the surroundings. The maids and attendants were all staring this way, pretending not to. “Sitting is my order.”
Any further protest in the face of the word “order” would be suicide. I sat perched on the very edge of the chair, spine rigid.
> [Special Event: Physical Distance Between Individuals Narrowed — Established]
“You look like you're dying of discomfort.”
“How could I possibly be comfortable?”
“I'd rather you be honest. I like that. From now on, don't hide anything in front of me. Speak like that.”
That was the same as telling me to hand over my life. When I fell silent, Ibelin calmly lifted her teacup. Just then, the garden entrance grew noisy, and a maid rushed toward the gazebo.
“My lady, Lady Estelle has finished her audience with the Duchess and wishes to pay her respects on her way out.”
Seraphina. My heart sank. Why did I keep getting entangled at this timing? Ibelin also narrowed her brows.
“That woman again?”
Then her golden eyes locked straight onto me. A cruelly precise intuition.
“Kyle, go bring her here.”
Why did she always throw me between the two of them? I screamed inwardly, but outwardly I had to bow respectfully.
“……As you command.”
When Seraphina, standing alone at the garden entrance, spotted me, her eyes sparkled and she smiled brightly. The sacred aura unique to the original heroine seemed to illuminate the surroundings.
> [Seraphina Estelle / Affection: 21 → 23]
I resented the heavens for why the numbers rose just from seeing my face.
“Greetings, my lady. My lady is waiting for you in the gazebo.”
“We meet again, Kyle.”
Seraphina naturally approached my side and matched my stride. Yet the distance was far too close for a servant and a distinguished guest.
“Kyle, may I ask you something?”
“……If it's within my ability to answer.”
“Why do you keep avoiding me?”
My steps nearly halted. She was sharp.
“I have not. I am merely observing proper etiquette befitting our stations.”
“No, you are avoiding me. Ever since we first met.”
Seraphina gazed at me with her clear blue eyes full of certainty, then smiled wistfully.
“It's all right. Even if you remain wary of me now…… I can just try harder to approach you.”
A chill ran down my spine. That was not something the future savior and saintess should say to a mere servant.
[Seraphina Estelle / Obsession: 2 → 4 / Danger: B → B+]
The numbers glowed red like warning lights. When the two arrived at the gazebo, Ibelin already wore a chilling expression, as if she had seen through everything.
“You're late. It seems you had quite the deep conversation in the meantime?”
“We had no particular conversation.”
“Lies.”
At Ibelin's sharp interrogation, Seraphina's expression stiffened slightly. But Ibelin didn't spare Seraphina a single glance, fixing her fierce gaze only on me as she murmured lowly.
“Kyle, come stand behind me.”
I immediately moved and took position at the diagonal behind Ibelin. Once I was hidden behind my master's back, Seraphina's eyes, now looking at me, cooled and sank.
> [Seraphina Estelle / Current Emotion: Displeasure, Jealousy]
The original story hadn't even begun, yet jealousy was blooming between the two heroines because of someone as insignificant as me instead of the crown prince. Cold sweat trickled down my chest at this absurd situation. Ibelin set down her teacup. The clink echoed heavily inside the gazebo.
“Kyle will soon become my personal butler. It doesn't look good for Lady Estelle to keep speaking privately with a servant of this house.”
At that declaration of war, Seraphina's blue eyes trembled violently.
[Warning: Formation of Rivalry Between Major Original Characters]
※ Current Survival Probability: 0.1% (No Change)
※ Note: The current situation has already converged to the worst difficulty, so the value will no longer decrease.
Even the system seemed to be mocking me. Ibelin's obsession and possessiveness, along with Seraphina's peculiar obsession and jealousy, collided head-on in midair, spewing toxic gas.
“Lady Estelle, if your business with the Duchess is finished, why don't you take your leave now?”
When Ibelin issued the dismissal, Seraphina quietly rose and called my name softly.
“Thank you for guiding me again today, Kyle. I'll see you next time.”
At that final, nail-driving greeting, Ibelin's eyes grew uncontrollably fierce.
> [Ibelin Rosenberg / Obsession: 8 → 11]
> Caution: Obsession has exceeded 10. Entering the stage of materialized possessiveness.
> [Seraphina Estelle / Obsession: 4 → 5]
“Kyle.”
The moment Seraphina moved away, Ibelin grabbed my collar as if snatching it and commanded.
“Don't even make eye contact with that woman without my permission. You're my butler.”
> [Ibelin Rosenberg / Affection: 28 → 32 / Dependency: 5 → 10]
The clear chime of the bell signaling lunch rang in the distance, but to my ears it sounded only like the click of a lock fastening perfectly around a collar. The more I struggled to survive, the deeper I walked into the massive web the villainess and the saintess had woven. Correcting this insane original story's trajectory had only just begun.