* * *

‘Hiding in my shadow?’

After Tiavias left, Serena returned to her room early, informing that she would skip dinner, and shut herself in.

When I turned pale and couldn’t say anything, Tiavias didn’t speak further.

Not long after, when Drukan brought some snacks, Tiavias silently finished the tea and snacks, then got up and left without lingering, just as quietly as she had arrived.

A bit flustered, Drukan chased after her and returned with a subtle expression. That was all.

‘I couldn’t focus on work at all.’

Various anxious feelings arose and disappeared at that emotionless statement that couldn’t be taken as a joke.

There’s no reason for a dragon of that caliber to lie.

“Nyx?”

Even after she called softly, Nyx didn’t appear.

“Nyx!”

When called again, the sound of pattering feet was heard from somewhere.

Serena’s expression hardened as she turned her head towards the sound.

The sound wasn’t coming from anywhere in the room. To be precise… it was coming from within the darkness that filled the room.

That is, from within her shadow that had become one with the numerous shadows in the room.

Nyx appeared from the darkness, perking up its ears.

“……”

[Why did you call, Serena!]

Nyx tilted its head and held up a notebook.

‘…That notebook too.’

The contents inside were about someone who was deceived after making a wrong contract with an unknown entity.

Some unknown entity proposed a ‘compensation’ to the person who had been possessed instead of me, hiding the truth and blinding them with lies.

That’s why the other person thought of this world as a novel or game and acted cruelly.

‘…Someone told her to become a villainess.’

Serena thought.

‘Since I only thought about running away to avoid the ending, someone who replaced me needed to make Serena Lavernia a villainess.’

The questions that had arisen since seeing the notebook became even clearer upon seeing Nyx.

“No, I was just wondering what you were doing. I’m feeling a bit down.”

Serena continued speaking as flatly as ever.

Hiding emotions and expressions was almost a specialty for her.

In fact, it would be more accurate to say that she was a bit scared and her expression had hardened, but that’s beside the point.

[You’re feeling down? Why, did something happen?]

Nyx asked as if it knew nothing.

‘…If it was in the shadows all along, shouldn’t it know what happened?’

Serena thought while shrugging her shoulders. Then, hugging a pillow, she shook her head as always.

After all, the feeling of fear was greater than feeling down.

Nyx, who had hopped over, gently tapped Serena’s cheek with its soft, jelly-like paw.

As Serena slightly raised her head, the rabbit discreetly held up its notebook.

[Don’t feel down, Serena. I’m here for you. No matter what kind of person you are or how bad you might be, I know your kindness. I’m on your side. Don’t worry.]

Seeing those words, Serena slowly buried her face in the pillow and raised her hand to stroke Nyx’s fluffy fur.

‘…I’ve been played by this little thing.’

Serena thought.

From the time when this small rabbit was her only support until now, it was clear that she had probably been deceived all along.

‘…This is ridiculous.’

She never thought she’d be fooled without even realizing it, even after coming this far.

But without that explanation, none of this situation made sense.

When she inserted Nyx into the questionable parts and reassembled the puzzle, although there were still some pieces that didn’t quite fit, most of it fell into place.

‘Nyx has been deceiving me.’

Although she didn’t know for what purpose, it was probably Nyx who had also deceived the other person who had possessed her body.

That’s why there was a notebook and a rabbit doll in that room when I first opened my eyes.

Let’s assume a case where it can only live as a doll if a contract isn’t made.

In that case, we can understand why Nyx was in the form of a doll.

When the other soul in my body disappeared, the contract was nullified.

So it returned to being a doll, and that’s why the notebook was there.

And Nyx became a rabbit again, not a doll, by making a new contract with Serena.

In other words, the culprit of this incident had been clinging tightly to her side from the very beginning.

‘But why?’

Serena wondered.

Just because she had deduced the culprit didn’t mean she could deduce the motive.

She couldn’t understand why anyone would do such a thing.

What need was there for Nyx to make ‘Serena Lavernia’ a villain?

Serena doesn’t know Nyx. She hasn’t incurred its wrath, nor does she remember having any conversation similar to it.

‘The world doesn’t necessarily need evil, right?’

This world is particularly peaceful. Is there really a need to forcibly create a villain in it?

Serena thought, burying her face in the pillow.

“…Thank you.”

As she slowly uttered her response, the soft jelly-like paw now gently stroked her hair.

‘What changes if Serena Lavernia becomes a villain?’

Other than Serena Lavernia’s life becoming thoroughly messy, nothing else changes, right?

It’s a world where no one becomes unhappy except for Serena, who meets a miserable end.

Even when I was reading the novel, I thought that there are no bad people among the characters in <Lucky Saintess>.

There might be humans who briefly stray onto a bad path, but in the end, they were all fundamentally not bad beings.

Every villain had their own reasons and circumstances, and the female protagonist embraced all those reasons and circumstances like a generous sea.

That’s why in this novel, Serena Lavernia was the only true villainess.

If there was a villain without reason, it was Serena Lavernia. That’s why even when reading the novel, it was full of curses against Serena Lavernia.

‘But why?’

Serena frowned.

Does it even make sense that it’s a world where everyone is good to begin with?

Serena recalled the protagonist couple and Magnus who had forgiven her wrongdoings.

She also thought of the Lavernia family.

‘Serena Lavernia’ had tried to kill people.
To Magnus, she was a precious family, and to the male protagonist, a beloved wife.
She was the Crown Princess.
No matter how much of a saintess she was, all she said was just words, and they forgave her with just light apologies.

Now they even interact with her without formality.

There wasn’t a single trace of resentment in that.

‘It’s strange.’

Let’s say Magnus realized that the current Serena is different from the past Serena who committed atrocities.

‘But what about the Lavernia marquisate and the male and female protagonists?’

It made no sense at all.

In fact, although he gets depressed every time he hears about it, it was right for Nocturne Lavernia to react that way.

If someone almost died, that level of anger is justified.

‘The person who had entered my body didn’t enjoy playing the role of a villainess either.’

They did it despite not wanting to.

The notebook clearly revealed those feelings.

‘Did that person return properly?’

Whether to a future 40 years later, or to a future where their parents were still alive.

Either way…

Serena tightly closed her eyes and then opened them.

This means that there’s a possibility that her own promise might not be properly kept either.

And it was clear that something was being plotted.

But she couldn’t understand what Nyx would gain by making Serena Lavernia a villain.

‘…Nyx, Nyx…’

Serena rolled around on the bed.

‘The requests are too simple to be dealing with the root of evil…’

In fact, Serena was the only one suffering mentally through all of this.

‘To think that I… was being deceived by a mere rabbit.’

The depression she felt feels like it could pierce the sky.

“Nyx.”

Serena carefully opened her mouth.

When she raised her head, Nyx, who had somehow brought a cabbage leaf and was nibbling on it, tilted its head.

“Are you perhaps a fat rabbit?”

Serena ended up asking that, forgetting her original question.

Compared to when they first met, its body is now plump because of the constant intake of food…

Thinking about being deceived by this creature that was constantly eating something every time she turned her head, Serena felt somewhat dumbfounded.

Startled by Serena’s words, Nyx hurriedly gobbled up the cabbage leaf it was holding, and with puffed-up cheeks, wrote something and held it out.

[What kind of rude thing is that to say, Serena! I’m a sleek and slim rabbit!]

But its body didn’t reflect that.

Serena picked up a hand mirror and placed it in front of Nyx.

It had been quite a while since she remembered the rabbit being sleek and slim.

[I, I am sleek and…]

Serena quietly pushed the hand mirror a bit closer.

The sound of frantic scribbling could be heard as the pages flipped back and forth.

[I, slim…!!]

Serena held the hand mirror still without moving.

[I’m a rabbit that just became a bit chubby, that’s all!! I’m a healthy rabbit!! Serena, you meanie!!]

Nyx turned its head away with a hurt expression, then quickly ran and buried only its head in the blanket.

Since only its head was buried in the blanket, Nyx’s bottom was sticking out, wiggling gently.