Chapter 14
“Of course, if something is obvious, you should still say it out loud.”
I mean, I told Herace that he was a lunatic and a genius—it was obvious, but I still said it. At my bold words, Herace gave a small, lazy laugh.
“Hahaha. My girlfriend is so smart. Sharp as a knife. Is there anything you can’t do? Are you even human?”
“As you can see, I am indeed human.”
Satisfied, I held out my hand to Herace. Beneath the darkening evening sky, we shook hands.
“Please take care of me again next time.”
“Take care with what?”
“The scenario.”
Next time, it would be my scenario that gets chosen. A desire to beat a genius stirred within me.
And at that moment, I realized why I’d been feeling so restless. My heart was fluttering because of this passion—because of all the emotions I had suppressed for decades, now bubbling back to the surface.
Not long after, I found myself using the trendy slang word, “Jackpot.” It didn’t really suit me, but there it was. My name and Herace’s name filled the front page of the newspapers and gossip magazines.
“They even put us on the cover of the gossip rag.”
I pulled out a ruler and measured. Our story sat right up there, close to the main headline.
“Our names are lined up together.”
“They even wrote ‘the villainess and the villain,’ my lady.”
“They know how to use keywords. Whoever wrote this knows how to ride the trends.”
Flipping the page, I stopped and gaped in disbelief.
“Not just one page—two! Two full pages about us! People are curious about me and Herace.”
The brilliant plan I had first suggested was working. And my partner and contract lover, Herace, was also shining with his own remarkable talents.
‘The probability of teamwork syncing this well must be astronomical.’
In my past life, both in college and in society, I had suffered so much from freeloaders. In that sense, Herace was perfection itself.
“Ah, here it is, my lady.”
Clara, who was assisting me, stuck her face into the gossip magazine. She, too, seemed fascinated by the attention I was getting.
“Let’s take a look at the famous Lady Light. The villainess herself! Famous for ignoring and disliking people!”
“They used the word ‘famous’ twice. If you’re going to fill two pages in a gossip rag, at least expand your vocabulary.”
“And it ends with: ‘Let’s stop looking into her.’”
“Well, since it’s all lies anyway, it’s actually beneficial to stop looking deeper.”
“But my lady, even if they stop looking into you, they aren’t stopping their curiosity about the two of you together!”
“Even if I’m boring, they still have interest in us.”
Finally, a path to survival was opening. For the first time, I felt a genuine hope that I could escape death. I couldn’t help but smile.
“But my lady…”
“Mm? I don’t think I have anything more to say.”
The truth was, I had spent the whole day recounting to Clara everything that had happened with Herace. Of course, I glossed over the contract relationship and private conversations with wordplay.
“But still… since you’re so capable of going out like this, why did you spend so much time living alone in the mansion?”
Her light question stabbed deep into my chest. And in that moment, I had to accept the truth I had long denied.
“I think… I was denying it.”
Denying this world.
Ever since transmigrating into this novel, I had turned away from reality, living days of lethargy. Maybe I had believed that by becoming the saintess and embracing everything, I’d find happiness.
‘Maybe even now, I haven’t fully accepted it.’
But something had changed. To be exact, things changed after I met Herace.
He was someone who made me curious about tomorrow. Because of him, I started to look forward to our meetings, to what came next, to the future itself.
“So before, you denied everything… and now you’re accepting being a villainess?!”
Feeling that conversation with her was impossible, I carefully gathered up the gossip magazines. Clara had gotten so excited that the newspapers were scattered everywhere.
I really needed to gift her a book titled How to Spend Money Wisely soon.
When I stepped down from the carriage, I widened my eyes and looked around. A deep forest surrounded me, with towering trees stretching up toward the sky. It wasn’t the Gray estate, nor one of their villas.
‘He told me last time to send letters here, too.’
Herace had explained it was for security reasons. Still, I didn’t expect the meeting place to be so isolated.
After reminding the driver to keep it secret and slipping him some gold, I walked toward the cabin. As I reached the spot, I saw a familiar face through the window.
‘So handsome.’
Herace stuck his head out of the window and waved, like a prince from a fairytale. I suddenly thought how lucky I was that he had taken the male lead role.
“I missed you.”
Even here, far from the palace, Herace carried an aura of nobility. I clenched my fist lightly so I wouldn’t be swept up in his brilliance.
“Missed who?”
“Hahaha! Filena.”
He waved dismissively, telling me not to joke around.
“Who else but you?”
“We saw each other less than a week ago. I wasn’t sure that’s long enough to warrant ‘I missed you.’ So I had to check.”
“Is that so?”
Herace crossed his arms and leaned them on the window frame, resting his chin there as he stared straight at me.
His beautiful red eyes glittered in the sunlight, trembling like rubies before curving into crescents.
“Should I say it again, then?”
“……”
“I missed you, Filena. I missed you so much I couldn’t sleep.”
“…Sleep is important. As my partner and contract holder, you getting sick would cause me multiple losses. So please make sure you sleep eight to nine hours a day.”
“Of course. What wouldn’t I do for my girlfriend?”
I clutched my bag tightly. Every time I met him, my shoulders stiffened and I stood on my toes.
Perhaps it was natural. Whenever I was with Herace, unexpected things happened. Though I was resourceful, my ability to handle sudden events was poor. Since he always poked at my weak points, my nerves grew tense.
It was a problem. And I planned to solve it by drafting a contract. I stepped forward to open the door—
“Herace, the door is locked.”
The window was wide open, but the door was firmly shut.
“Yes, it’s locked.”
“Shouldn’t you open it for me?”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
Fun, huh. So today, Herace found it amusing to keep me from opening the door.
I set down my bag and prepared myself. Whatever trick he wanted, I could endure.
“Go ahead, tell me.”
“That’s what I was waiting for.”
In a flash, something appeared in his hand—a pointed party hat. Herace beckoned me over.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
I walked beneath the window. He mouthed the word “fun” and placed the hat on my head.
“What kind of costume is this?”
“What else? It’s rehearsal, so you won’t be flustered later. Think of it as theater practice.”
“So, what role am I?”
“You’re a woodcutter working somewhere around here.”
These trees? Even an experienced woodcutter couldn’t cut them down. For someone my size, it was unthinkable.
“You’re thinking, ‘I’m too weak to play a woodcutter,’ aren’t you?”
“Because it’s true.”
At my retort, Herace lightly tapped my forehead with his fist. He gave me a small smile, locking eyes with me as if to tell me to focus.
“Instead of complaining, just practice the role. You don’t actually have to chop the wood.”
“Ah, right. Okay, I’ll do it.”
