The Villainess Has No Regrets in this Life - Chapter 1

“That’s why you shouldn’t have messed with Leila.”

“Brothers, please don’t be like that… Because of me, Sister….”

“Leila, how is that because of you? Don’t say such things. You’re just too kind….”

The three men and one woman standing in front of me were all looking at me with contemptuous expressions.

Who are they, you ask?

Family… No, people I could once call family.

They probably never thought of me as family, but.

To me, they were.

Now, many people seeing this situation will be curious.

Why I’ve ended up in this state, rolling around among my family members, and on the brink of death.

The reason is simple.

I have striking looks.

That point became something that made me superior to Leila, and I, being superior to Leila, became the enemy of the Masipacius family.

The young duke of the duchy that Leila was interested in showed a brief interest in me.

That too is one of the wrongs I committed.

They say I’m a bad woman who intentionally approached him to spite Leila.

How ridiculous.

I was busy studying.

I didn’t have time to pay attention to men.

I am very intelligent.

Enough to graduate early from the academy as the top student.

This part, too, is something that makes me superior to Leila.

But somehow, rumors like this started spreading in the Masipacius mansion.

‘I heard that Rowenloa Masipacius stole the answer sheet to take the exam.’

It’s absolutely ridiculous.

For such easy questions, I wouldn’t have needed an answer sheet.

But there was a reason such rumors started circulating. Because Leila failed the early graduation exam.

These small and vain rumors piled up, and I became a terrible person aiming for Leila’s position, and my end was miserable.

Expulsion from the Masipacius Marquis family and hanging due to false accusations.

I have just been expelled from the Masipacius Marquis family and am now waiting for the carriage that will take me to the gallows.

Why do I have to die, you ask?

Everyone in this empire believes that I hired someone to kill Leila.

They say I deserve to be hanged for the evil deeds I’ve committed so far, and for instigating murder to kill Leila.

And to that verdict, the people who call themselves my family nodded.

Yes, even before Leila came to the mansion, we weren’t exactly on good terms. But after Leila came, they looked at me as if I were rotten, crumbling garbage.

…This crazy family.

They’re all so obsessed with Leila that the truth doesn’t matter.

I begged.

That if I’m reborn in the next life, I’d throw away this damned family and live a truly splendid life.

That I’d never repeat my stupid actions of trying to be loved by everyone and making efforts to be close to Leila.

And so, I heard the sound of the carriage coming to take me.

The carriage gradually approached me, and I got up to board it.

What a crappy life, it’s better to end it quickly.

But, something feels strange.

My legs… won’t move?

The carriage keeps coming towards me, but my legs refuse to move.

Confused, I just stood there blankly watching the carriage approach me.

“…Hey, what are you doing? Get up.”

“Sister, even if your hanging has been decided… you shouldn’t lose hope!”

Wow, even in this situation, Leila is saying things that even Poppy, the dog raised by the Masipacius Marquis family, wouldn’t say.

Ah, the dog’s name isn’t actually Poppy, but because it’s raised with Leila’s love, they named it Rail-something, so I just call it Poppy on my own.

Why is it a dog receiving Leila’s love when I brought it and raised it?

This is goodbye to my dear Poppy too.

I’m a bit sad to part with you, Poppy.

I felt movement behind me trying to lift me up, but my body remained pressed to the ground like a rock, refusing to get up.

The commotion behind me soon turned to shock, and as the carriage showed no sign of stopping and my body showed no sign of getting up, I eventually let go of all attachments and quietly closed my eyes.

Please don’t let me live such a life again.

Instead of being someone afflicted with this half-baked good girl syndrome like in this life, let me become someone wicked who can live wielding all the power and men in the world.

And, sorry Leila, but I can’t die with good feelings towards you.

Even if you didn’t intend it, you were ultimately the beginning of my tragedy.

When I’m reborn, I’ll live happier than you.

For sure.

* * *

With that prayer, I died.

…I died, right?

…No, I died, but what’s this feeling at my fingertips?

This sensation is definitely that of the blanket in my room?

So, with the thought of checking whether what’s unfolding before me is hell or heaven, I opened my eyes….

[Here comes the cliché of ordinary humans again.]

…What cliché?

[Seeing that Leila is in an orphanage, Rowenloa must be the villainess. If it turns out that Leila is actually the daughter of the Masipacius Marquis family, and the story is about spectacularly defeating the villainess Rowenloa, I’ve seen through the lives of all the characters appearing here~]

…It’s true that Leila was adopted and then revealed to be the real daughter of the Marquis, but.

What on earth are these letters floating in front of my eyes?

No, why am I, Rowenloa, becoming the villainess?

What is this…!

“Miss! Are you awake?”

As I was reading the letters floating in front of my eyes, Mylene suddenly burst into the room, rushing towards me.

“Don’t tell me Father killed you too, Mylene…?”

“What are you suddenly saying after waking up? Hurry and change your clothes. You need to go down to the first floor hall right now.”

…If Mylene isn’t dead, does that mean I’m alive?

I’m alive?

No, is it possible to be alive after being run over by that carriage?

“His Grace Marquis Masipacius went out for volunteer work at an orphanage and brought back a girl!”

While I was in a daze, letting Mylene’s hands take care of my whole body, Mylene’s words struck my head.

“Miss! His Grace Marquis Masipacius has brought a girl from the orphanage!”

This development seems….

“I hear her name is Leila? Can you believe it, she was in His Grace’s arms as she entered the mansion?”

This… the situation is exactly the same as when Leila first entered the Masipacius mansion…?

“Her name is Leila? He said he wants to introduce her and has called for the young masters and you to the dining room. What on earth is going on….”

Mylene continued to grumble, seemingly displeased about Leila’s arrival, as she handed me a dress slightly more elaborate than usual.

It seems she didn’t like the idea of bringing a girl from an orphanage when I was here.

“…Rowenloa, I think such an elaborate dress at home is excessive.”

At that moment, the words my father had said to me years ago when I went down to the dining room wearing that dress flashed quickly through my mind.

…Was this incident so impressive that it remained so clearly in my memory?

Ah, I don’t know.

For now, I should go down and check the situation.

“Um, Mylene. I’m sorry, but could you give me my usual clothes instead of this one?”

“What? But….”

“I understand how you feel. Thank you for thinking of me. But I’m not feeling well today, so I’d like to wear something comfortable.”

Hearing my words, Mylene fussed about calling a doctor, and only after I calmed her down was I able to change my clothes.

So, I neatly tied my hair and went down to the dining room.

As the dining room door opened, I saw Father, Leila, and my brothers seated.

I flashed a smile at them.

“Good morning, everyone.”

It’s the exact same situation as before.

No doubt about it.

I have been given a new life on the pretext of a ridiculous death.

And with knowledge of at least several years into the future.

…But, what were those letters floating in front of my eyes earlier?

Did I see an illusion?

Leila jumped up and greeted me.

“Ah, hello….”

Father frowned at Leila’s action.

“A child with injured legs, trying to greet….”

Hearing Father’s words, Leila looked at him with an embarrassed smile.

“Still… in a way, I’m an uninvited guest, so I thought I should at least greet properly….”

I kept the smile on my face even as I looked at her.

“I’ve heard. That there’s a girl who came with Father….”

Saying that, I glanced at where she was sitting and then shifted my gaze to Father.

That seat where Leila was sitting was where I always sat until she entered the Marquis’s mansion.

And, it was also where our late mother always sat.

Father seemed to understand the meaning of my gaze and briefly avoided my eyes before clearing his throat.

In the past, I would have confronted Father, saying that seat was mine, but now I just kept looking at Father, expecting an explanation of this situation.

“Because Leila injured her leg and I carried her in… Surely you’re not thinking of complaining about a seat as a daughter of a noble family….”

“Of course not. I’m almost old enough to enter the academy. But… I am a bit worried.”

Hearing my words, the gazes of everyone in our house, no, the Marquis’s family, turned to me.

Ignoring their gazes, I continued speaking.

“If a child who just entered today is sitting in that seat where our mother used to sit… how would others see it….”

Hearing this, Father slightly furrowed his brow and swept his gaze over everyone standing in the dining room.

The servants were busy avoiding the Marquis’s gaze, while my brothers flinched at the mention of mother, then started looking back and forth between Father and Leila.

Our mother had quite a good reputation among the household servants.

So, when I was even younger than now, I used to maintain good relationships with the servants.

For some reason, as I grew older, our relationship became awkward, though.

Yes, you too used to look at Leila with such eyes.

Eventually, those lukewarm gazes turned into contemptuous looks directed at me.

“But, I believe Father didn’t give up that seat with such intentions. Of course, that child must be sitting there without knowing this fact. Today, I’ll sit next to Brother Rubert.”

In my previous life, I didn’t like Leila who suddenly entered as the adopted daughter of the Marquis family, but I made every effort to get along well with her.

To the extent that I was genuinely happy when I heard that Leila was Father’s real daughter.

I thought I could be good friends with you.

But I ultimately met a very miserable end.

As a wicked person desperate to kill Leila.