Chapter 2
The Male Lead Went Crazy for the Troublesome Villainess — Episode 2
"Even after you join the expedition, do your utmost not to disgrace the name of Ardena."
Even in the middle of all this, the Duke of Ardena did nothing but state his business.
There was not the slightest hint of concern for his daughter. He was as composed as a man handling a task, and there was no affection in the way he looked at me.
Is this guy really my father?
"I can't even use a sword."
I protested calmly.
I could easily list a hundred reasons why I shouldn't join the expedition.
And I didn't want to die.
I didn't want to set off with the expedition and come back as a cold corpse.
"I'll only be a burden to the others. If that happens, I'll bring shame to the name of Ardena."
"That is not your concern. I will handle whatever comes after, so you only need to move as I command. Whether you become a burden or disgrace the name of Ardena is for me to decide. Not you."
The final boss of patriarchs, huh.
It was plainly obvious that he regarded his child as his own property.
No, Rosana. I'd known you were just a character who caused trouble for everyone, but that wasn't it......?
As expected.
A villainess isn't just born that way.
Why, even the problem children on TV mostly had parents with issues.
With a father like that, it was obvious Rosana couldn't have grown up any other way.
Since he meant to push me into it anyway, further resistance was pointless.
"Do as you're told. If you defy my orders again, I will not let it slide. This time, being locked in the attic for a day or two won't be the end of it."
The Duke's voice dropped low.
Each family was required to send at least one person to the expedition.
With the fate of the world at stake, the imperial household was closely monitoring whether each house took part.
Any house that failed to participate would have a hard time avoiding repercussions.
No, but he even locked his own daughter in the attic?
In an instant, Rosana's memories surfaced.
'For something like you, possessed by an evil spirit, you must be locked up and starved before you come to your senses. Lock Rosana in the attic and do not give her a single sip of water.'
'Rosana, you've made another mistake. Spilling soup on Her Majesty the Empress's hem? Are you out of your mind? Even a horse in the stable would be better than you! If your trembling hands are the problem, there is a way to fix them! Have Rosana stay in the stable for a week!'
'Useless thing.'
I remembered the Duke's verbal abuse raining down on me, followed immediately by violence.
I even had a memory of truly crying myself to sleep in the stable.
Is she really his own daughter......?
No matter what I said, things would end up going the Duke's way anyway.
I ground my teeth.
"Yes, Father."
"......You're not thinking of running away again, are you? If you were born a member of House Ardena, then keep your dignity and your word, Rosana."
"No. I won't run away."
Even if I ran, it was obvious I'd be caught and brought back.
I didn't know the geography of this world, I had no money, and I didn't even have anyone to help me. What could I possibly do when I didn't know the way, had no money, and had no friends?
I didn't stand a chance no matter what I tried. Better to keep my head down and wait for an opportunity.
There was no reason to cause trouble and get locked up for nothing.
There had to be a way to escape from this shitty place.
"Truly?"
"Yes, Father. As you said, it is a matter of representing House Ardena. I will consider it an honor."
"What's gotten into you, saying something sensible. Good, you've thought it through well."
I obeyed out loud while thinking something entirely different.
This world was ruined.
Monsters were occupying civilian homes, and many people were dying.
Before the first monsters they encountered, the soldiers had been helpless, and against those with bodies far superior to humans, humanity stood on the brink of ruin.
Then, in the midst of that, people with abilities appeared.
One of them was the male lead. With that male lead at the head, the expedition was formed.
The main story was that the male lead and female lead succeeded in subjugating the monsters and returned, bringing peace back to the world.
Since it was a novel I'd been reading before falling asleep yesterday, it came back clearly.
The important part was the line about 'the female lead and male lead succeed, and peace returns.'
Now, this world was going to return to normal anyway.
If so, I ought to prepare for the future.
I would diligently dodge death flags, survive, and definitely return. To the capital.
And at that time, I would not go back to the Duke of Ardena's household. I would become independent.
With my own strength!
I'd become someone impressive who would never let the Duke of Ardena push me around again.
I had just reached that point in my thoughts.
"Still, since I'm uneasy, lock that one up. If she behaves obediently, see that she's fed properly."
No one went against the Duke of Ardena's words.
It looked like my transmigration was going to begin with imprisonment.
Is that man really her biological father?
What the hell is this!
* * *
I looked around the room.
It was called an attic, but perhaps because it was still a place where his daughter would be confined, it was decently furnished.
There was a bed, a window, and hmm. There's even a wardrobe? Though there's nothing inside it.
Besides, the bed was soft enough to sleep on. The bathroom also seemed to be maintained after a fashion.
This much is fine.
Before I transmigrated—or should I call it my previous life now?
Before I died, I was Korea's first female UDT combat operator. You'd have to know the field to understand how big a deal that was.
I had to endure conditions more extreme than this. I'd undergone training that pushed past human limits without eating properly or resting.
"This much is nothing."
I'd decided to enlist in the military to escape the loan sharks chasing me to collect my father's debts.
I figured they wouldn't chase me all the way into the military, and if I was going to run anyway, I thought it would be better to head out to sea entirely.
Then I thought it would be nice if I could beat up most loan sharks.
I'd meant to become a Marine, one of the so-called 'ghost catchers,' but ended up on an even harder path.
Natural physical gifts, effort that felt like death, and on top of that, shining talent.
Then someone came along who saw that I had all three in equal measure.
Thanks to that, I was able to become the first female combat operator in history.
For someone like me, conditions like this were nothing.
And on top of that, a ruined world?
This might even be an opportunity God gave me.
"The male lead and female lead will save the world."
All I had to do was stay out of it and enjoy the benefits.
The problem was this body.
I kneaded the soft, flabby body firmly.
As expected. There isn't a single bit of muscle. Still, the natural bone structure itself doesn't seem bad.
I tried some light stretching. Fortunately, perhaps because this was a knightly family, my physical condition didn't seem bad.
To have been born with this much physical potential, only to ruin it this badly.
This was all because of the people who called themselves her family.
'I want to learn the sword too, Father.'
'You really... You're just like your mother—hopeless beyond saving, Rosana. What you must do is already decided! Listen well to me, stay quiet, and when the time comes, marry a man from a good family that I choose and be of use to the house. Don't do useless things, and do as you're told.'
It all remained in my memory.
Even what had caused Rosana to be cast aside by her family and grow twisted.
And why Rosana had become a troublesome character who was all talk.
She'd had many things she wanted to do and many things she could do, but all of it had been blocked.
Whenever she rebelled, she was locked up like this under the name of discipline. Unable to eat balanced meals, her body had wasted away.
Tsk, tsk. So there was another father like that.
He was exactly the kind of person who reminded me of my father from my previous life.
Was this the parallel theory? How do I meet such an identical person here?
Even though he'd dragged us into debt with loan sharks, he'd gone around saying a girl had no need to learn.
Now let's think productive thoughts. I'm not going to die the same way, am I?
Whether I wanted to or not, I was going to be dragged off to the expedition. To survive there.......
"At the very least, I'd better be good at running."
I examined my leg muscles carefully.
Hmm, completely ruined.
I looked around the room.
To make this trash body usable, it seemed I would need high-intensity training no matter what.
Still, even though it was an attic, the space was fairly wide.
This much...... would be fine for exercising.
Bodyweight exercise is so good for improving stamina.
And if I cut this curtain up appropriately?
I could use it like a towel for exercise.
The expedition's departure date had been announced to me by the man who was supposedly my father.
He'd said one month from now.
Within that time, I would definitely accomplish something.