Reforming the Villain Family (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 11
Sophia explained to me that Yan would only escort me when I left the room.
In other words, as long as I didn’t step outside, I wouldn’t have to see him again.
My face kept burning, and I desperately wanted to avoid Yan altogether.
‘But I’ll have to face him sooner or later anyway.’
Avoiding him wouldn’t make what happened this morning disappear.
I let out a deep sigh, grabbed my bag, and stepped outside—only to immediately lock eyes with Yan.
Unlike me, who froze in place, he smiled gently and bowed his head slightly.
I bit my lips hard and silently started walking. Yan didn’t walk beside me but followed behind at a distance.
Whenever I slowed my pace, he matched it; whenever I stopped, he halted too, keeping a steady distance.
It was far more distracting than I’d expected.
I glanced back cautiously. The moment our eyes met, the corners of Yan’s mouth softened into a gentle smile.
“Does it bother you?”
Yan had instantly read my thoughts. He kindly explained further.
“You may go about your usual routine, Miss. If it’s uncomfortable, I’ll follow from a bit farther away.”
I appreciated his concern, but what actually bothered me was something else entirely.
‘If only I’d gone to bed early last night.’
The morning incident kept replaying in my mind. I sighed heavily again. Just then, Yan spoke up first.
“I look quite a mess in the mornings too.”
I stopped and turned around to find him adding playfully,
“Especially since I sleep a lot. On holidays, I often can’t get up even when the sun is high in the sky.”
“…….”
“So please don’t worry about it.”
Yan ended softly. I stood there dumbfounded, staring blankly at his smile before abruptly turning my head away.
“Mm, okay,” a tiny voice murmured near my lips.
[This is the timeline separator]After passing through the front door, I hurried toward the garden.
I’d come out to the garden, pretending to admire the flowers earnestly, just to have some quiet time alone with my thoughts.
Already, there had been two assassination attempts inside the mansion. At first, I’d assumed the ill-tempered duke had arbitrarily executed someone, but that wasn’t the case.
‘This was an event from the original story.’
In the original, there were three major incidents where the duke’s life was threatened, and one of them involved him drinking poisoned tea.
But who was the duke? He was none other than the man who firmly held control over this vast northern land of Hesera.
Although the duke did drink the poison this time, he seemed resistant to ordinary toxins and quickly recovered without serious injury.
Not long after, the culprit behind the attempt was swiftly apprehended.
‘The culprit was one of the duke’s retainers.’
During the investigation, two individuals stood out as the prime suspects.
One was a retainer whose excessively upright character constantly interfered with the duke’s harsh actions, and the other openly opposed accepting Clemens as the heir.
That was all I could recall. I groaned and clutched my head in frustration.
‘I can’t remember the names.’
Perhaps because they were just passing extras, I couldn’t recall anything specific.
‘I remember one was a count, and… what else?’
Still, I stubbornly tried to dig the memory out. I had to remember—I must remember.
‘They said they’d introduce me to the retainers soon.’
In a few days, all the retainers would gather at the duke’s estate to be introduced to me.
The day the duke drank the poison was precisely during that gathering.
‘If the duke collapses from the poison, I could be in danger too.’
Since the person was just a fleeting character, aside from being a count, no other details came to mind.
‘If only I could remember who it was.’
Deep in thought, I continued walking briskly.
“At this rate, we’ll all end up like oxen watching chickens. First adopting an orphan, now naming him heir!”
“Miss, wait a moment…!”
Yan’s voice briefly reached me, but lost in serious contemplation, I failed to hear it and kept walking ahead.
“My lord! Please refrain from speaking like that…! Just getting this far has already left me utterly distressed!”
“Nonsense! Am I not even allowed to speak my mind freely anymore? Stop nagging and go find that ledger I mentioned instead!”
“Oh dear, my lord! Please, lower your voice…!”
I only realized a dark shadow had fallen over me long after it had happened.
“Miss!”
Yan urgently pulled me backward.
“Oof!”
Thanks to Yan, I stopped just before colliding with someone ahead. When I finally looked up, my heart pounded wildly.
‘If I’d been a moment slower, I would’ve tripped over that foot!’
Whether intentional or not, had I collided with that foot, I would’ve surely stumbled backward.
“Are you alright?”
Yan looked down at me with deep concern in his eyes. Startled, I stared straight ahead, my heart still racing.
A middle-aged man with a short mustache and a notably plump chin was staring fixedly at me.
“This must be the young miss His Grace recently inquired about.”
An elderly servant standing behind the man whispered to him—but not quietly enough, as I heard every word clearly.
“Ah, I see.”
The count wrapped his plump belly with both hands and exhaled with a soft “Hmm!”
“Pleased to meet you, young miss. I am Count Ripe, one of the retainers serving your family.”
‘A retainer’s already here at the duke’s estate.’
Though my heart fluttered anxiously, I forced myself to greet him calmly.
“Yes, hello.”
“Oh, truly delighted! I’d only heard rumors and was quite curious—what a lovely young lady you are.”
Then, he reached out with his large hand and lightly tapped my head.
Startled, I quickly covered my head with both hands. Even the elderly servant behind the count seemed surprised by his sudden gesture.
Yan belatedly moved to block his hand.
“You mustn’t touch the young miss so freely!”
“Oh dear, oh dear! Forgive my absentmindedness—she’s just so adorable.”
Even after hearing Yan’s reprimand, the count leisurely pulled his hand back.
His eyes remained neutral while only the corners of his mouth curled upward.
“It seems this old man’s walk wasn’t entirely in vain. Though I couldn’t meet His Grace, I had the fortune of meeting you, young miss.”
“If you came to see His Grace…”
“He mentioned being busy with urgent matters. Besides, I have another engagement shortly, so I’ll be taking my leave now.”
He cut off Yan’s words and vanished down the corridor with his servant—a surprisingly nimble departure for someone of his build.
Only after the count disappeared could I finally relax a little.
‘Of course the retainers wouldn’t be pleased with me.’
Count Ripe’s attitude just now had been clear—he didn’t recognize me as the duke’s child.
‘I can’t just stand by while the duke remains in danger.’
His peril meant my own. Just then, a low voice came from behind.
“What are you doing here?”
I turned around to see the duke striding toward me.
‘He must be coming from the training grounds.’
Unlike other days, he wasn’t in his formal uniform but wore comfortable attire, his hair loose and naturally tousled.
“Yan, have you forgotten your duty?”
A chill ran down my spine as the duke approached. I sensed it instantly.
‘He’s angry.’
The atmosphere turned icy in an instant, freezing me in place.
If even I could tell, Yan—the knight—surely understood the duke’s reprimand.
Though the duke said nothing explicit, his presence alone pressed heavily upon Yan.
Yan quickly lowered his head.
“No, I haven’t.”
“Then what was that I just witnessed?”
“My apologies—it was my oversight.”
Yan’s voice trembled slightly.
‘But why is he so angry?’
Confused, I looked back and forth between the duke and Yan. Filen answered my unspoken question, whispering into my ear.
“Just now, didn’t the count touch the young miss’s head without permission? That’s precisely what a bodyguard should’ve prevented beforehand.”
The scene replayed clearly in my mind.
Count Ripe had freely tapped my head without asking.
‘It didn’t bother me.’
Yes, I’d been startled, but that was all. It hadn’t hurt, so it truly didn’t matter. Yet the duke clearly thought otherwise.
“I should replace your bodyguard.”
Yan’s expression darkened instantly. I hastily stepped between them.
“Your Grace, wait!”
“What is it?”
“I’m fine—really, it didn’t hurt at all.”
“Oh, Miss…”
Yan tried to stop me, but I ignored him and stood firmly in front.
“So please don’t blame Yan. I’m perfectly alright.”
“This isn’t your concern.”
His sharp gaze made my knees weak—if I said otherwise, it’d be a lie.
I instinctively flinched backward.
But if I’d intended to back down, I wouldn’t have spoken up in the first place.
“Why are you angry when I said I’m fine?”
“What?”
The duke’s brows furrowed sharply. Yan grew visibly uneasy, and Filen, too, looked flustered.
It was the duke who broke the heavy silence, letting out an impatient, humorless chuckle.
Rolling his eyes as if utterly exasperated, he turned his body fully away.
Treating me as if I were invisible, he addressed Filen instead.
“Take the child back to her room.”
“Come now, young miss—shall we go together?”
Filen gently coaxed as he approached me. The duke spoke coldly to Yan.
“You will follow me.”
My heart sank at those words.
‘What does he plan to do to Yan!’
Without thinking, I blurted out desperately,
“Don’t be mad at Yan!”
[This is the timeline separator]Back in his office, Kyleius finished his tasks faster than usual.
Filen was the same.
On any other day, he’d have been glad to finish early, but today, he couldn’t bring himself to feel happy.
‘His Grace is in an exceptionally foul mood.’
Filen felt conflicted—he could guess why, yet it was something entirely beyond his control.
When Filen briefly stepped out of the office, he saw Kyleius had already changed into casual attire and was leaving the room.
“My lord, where are you headed?”
“To spar.”
‘…Looks like I’ll get beaten senseless today too, for no clear reason.’
Filen hesitated briefly.
Except for a short period of aimlessness in his past, he’d devoted his entire life to serving the ducal house—and intended to keep doing so.
Though their roles differed, the knights of the order were just like him—loyal servants of the ducal house.
Recalling that shared loyalty and kinship, Filen mustered his courage and stopped the duke once more.
“Didn’t you already visit the training grounds this morning? Isn’t it a bit harsh on the knights…?”
“Then you can be my opponent instead.”
“I’ll be careful and return promptly.”
Filen swiftly changed his tone and scurried away.
And that day, anguished cries echoed through the training grounds well into the night.
Male lead first thought she played hard to get, only to realize she
really disliked him
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead
_____
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (108)
Hahaha, the Duke is very jealous! What, you’re not a child?
What’s this, Diane? Finally you have a name! It’s very beautiful and suits our little one, but you’re stranger than the duke.
He’s a real filthy jerk, he’s the villain, not the duke. Our girl is very clever.
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Miioo
Why is he angry? When will they tell us her name? It’s so boring.