Reforming the Villain Family (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 12
“…Who wouldn’t act like a villain, right?”
In the end, my guard was replaced by a knight whose face I’d never seen before.
Unlike Yan, who had greeted me on the first day, this man merely cast a quick glance my way and silently followed behind me without a word.
I was quick on the uptake—I immediately realized he was being forced to do something he disliked.
I suspected he resented being assigned to guard a young girl like me.
“Yan wasn’t like that.”
A pointless thought suddenly crossed my mind. I shook my head firmly.
“No, it doesn’t matter to me at all. I shouldn’t care what others think.”
After playing alone with my toys in the garden, I noticed the sun was setting and slowly got to my feet.
“I don’t want to run into the Duke.”
Two days had passed since my guard changed. During that time, I’d diligently avoided the Duke.
There were two reasons for this.
First, because I’d unknowingly yelled at him while defending Yan.
“Shouting at the Duke!”
At first, I avoided him out of fear of the repercussions.
But seeing my guard replaced the very next day made me angrier than afraid.
“He does whatever he pleases!”
He assigned guards however he wanted, and changed them just as arbitrarily.
“Villainous Duke—I can’t even stand the sight of him.”
That was the second reason I kept avoiding him.
“I really was fine, though.”
It was the Count’s fault for touching my head without permission—not Yan’s.
Besides, the Duke usually showed no interest in me at all.
I couldn’t understand why he’d been so unusually sensitive that day. I guessed he’d simply needed someone to take his anger out on.
“Or maybe he doesn’t get along with that Count.”
His name was Count Ripe, if I remembered correctly.
I made a mental note to remember that name well—I’d need to keep an eye on him during the general assembly.
I deliberately took a roundabout path through the garden to return to the front entrance.
Relieved that I’d successfully avoided the Duke yet again today, I climbed the stairs with light steps.
It was fortunate that the Duke’s office and my room were in separate parts of the house.
As long as I kept actively avoiding him, I’d hardly ever run into him inside the mansion.
But when I returned to my room, I froze in place.
“You’re finally here.”
The Duke lifted his head as if he’d been waiting for me.
[This is the timeline separator]An oppressive silence settled between us.
I cautiously raised my eyes—only to meet his icy gaze—and shivered involuntarily.
If looks could kill, I felt my throat would’ve been crushed instantly.
“Why did he come looking for me?”
I never expected the Duke himself would come to my room and wait for me.
“Delma should be bringing cookies soon.”
Of all times, it was precisely when Delma usually brought snacks.
But with the Duke in my room, she obviously wouldn’t be able to deliver them right away.
I was annoyed at missing out on cookies, but even more frightened.
“He couldn’t have come because of what I shouted that day, could he?”
I measured the distance from my seat to the window.
If necessary, I’d jump out.
It was a bit high, but still better than suffering whatever the Duke might do to me.
Just as I glanced toward the window, the Duke suddenly asked,
“What are you looking at so intently?”
“Nothing much…”
“You’re not thinking of running away again, are you?”
“…”
He’d seen right through me. Flustered, I silently lowered my eyes to the floor.
Another heavy silence stretched between us. Just then, Philen entered the room carrying some documents.
I’d never been so glad to see him.
“It’s Philen!”
“My Lady, am I really that welcome?”
He brightened at my warm greeting. Just as Philen cheerfully approached me—
“The documents.”
The Duke held out a hand toward him. His expression had grown even sterner than before.
“Yes, I’ve brought them.”
Sensing something unusual, Philen’s smile vanished instantly.
“What’s making them so serious?”
I nervously darted my eyes around, my toes curling in tension.
“It’s been a month since you arrived here.”
Without a word, the Duke handed me the document.
“Diane Meji Crustel?”
I read aloud the name written in elegant script.
I looked back and forth between the document and the Duke. Since he’d shown it to me, it clearly had something to do with me.
That meant…
“You’ve probably heard from Sophia. In three days, I’ll introduce you to the retainers. After that day, you’ll officially be recognized as a member of the ducal household.”
In three days, I’d stand before the retainers and publicly declare myself as the Duke’s legitimate daughter.
The Duke pointed to the name “Diane” written on the document he’d placed before me.
“This is your name.”
Just then, Philen leaned toward the Duke and whispered,
“My Lord, children this age usually can’t read yet.”
“I know. Step aside.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I can read, though.”
It wasn’t something Rebecca had taught me.
After regaining memories of my past life, I’d taught myself to read just to survive.
But I didn’t bother telling the Duke that. I stayed quiet, waiting patiently, and he slowly enunciated each syllable for me.
“Diane—this will be your name from now on.”
I still resented the Duke. He’d changed my guard against my will and taken his anger out on Yan, even though I’d said I was fine.
“…But the name is really beautiful.”
It sounded like the name of a child cherished by her family all her life.
“My original name was that of a foolish bird.”
Lil—that was my real name. It sounded identical to the name of the bird known as the dumbest in the Eastern region.
With a name like that, it was only natural the neighborhood kids mocked me daily.
“Why’s your name a bird’s name?”
“Bet it’s because her head’s as empty as a bird’s!”
Making fun of someone’s name was childish and petty. And just because my name matched that silly bird didn’t mean I was actually foolish.
I knew that—but with this small body, any protest would only bring violence, scorn, and ridicule.
Even so, I don’t think I’d hated my name that much back then.
I only began hating even my own name after overhearing Rebecca, completely drunk, casually explain its origin.
“When we brought you home, a bird outside was screeching so loudly it hurt my ears.”
That bird probably wasn’t even a lil.
The lil, known for its large size and poor intelligence, lived only in the East—while we were far in the North.
Rebecca must’ve only known the lil—the most commonly recognized bird—and named me after it.
Realizing my name was nothing more than that of a meaningless, foolish bird turned out to be surprisingly heartbreaking.
“Why so quiet?”
This villainous Duke—taking out his anger on Yan so arbitrarily—
naming me without asking, then just declaring it as if it were decided.
…but, well, the name isn’t bad.
“It’s nothing.”
I reluctantly replied, yet couldn’t tear my eyes away from where my new name was written.
My lips kept twitching into a smile, so I clenched them tightly to suppress it.
“By the way, where have you been wandering off to lately?”
Just as my mood started lifting, the Duke suddenly asked a strange question.
It made me feel like I couldn’t sit still for even a moment. I felt utterly wronged.
Ever since my guard changed to a stranger, even moving around freely made me self-conscious.
Unlike Yan, my new guard clearly showed his annoyance whenever I lingered outside even a little longer.
“I haven’t been wandering around much.”
“That’s impossible.”
“I really haven’t!”
“Then are you saying you never left your room at all?”
That wasn’t true either. I shook my head. The Duke slightly furrowed his brow.
“Then why have you been so hard to notice?”
Now it was my turn to frown—I couldn’t grasp his point.
Another awkward silence fell. Then the Duke spoke again.
“Could it be you’ve been deliberately avoiding me?”
…That was impossible to deny.
“Seems I guessed right.”
The Duke stared straight at me. As I tried to shyly evade his gaze, he let out a quiet sigh.
“About the guard that day…”
“…”
“Yan was indeed at fault. He admitted it himself. He should’ve stopped the Count before he touched you.”
I didn’t understand why he was bringing this up now—after already replacing my guard.
“If the Count had been holding a weapon instead of his bare hands, the situation could’ve been dangerous.”
His words kept missing the point. He seemed to have something he wanted to say but kept circling around it.
“So, Duke—what exactly do you want to say?”
I finally asked, unable to bear it anymore.
The Duke didn’t answer right away. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
His eyes wandered awkwardly around the room, looking unusually thoughtful.
His voice, normally sharp and cutting, now sounded uncharacteristically hesitant.
“…I’ll… let you.”
I couldn’t make out what he meant.
“I didn’t hear you.”
“…I’ll change your guard back.”
His unexpected words left me stunned for a moment—then, without realizing it, I broke into a wide smile.
“Really?!”
“But there’s a condition.”
Of course. He wouldn’t agree to my request so easily.
I waited warily for his terms, and the Duke spoke seriously.
[This is the timeline separator]Having finished what he needed to say, Kyleius returned to his office, satisfied.
He replayed his recent conversation with the child in his mind.
He’d been wondering these past few days why he kept failing to catch sight of her—but never imagined she’d actually been avoiding him on purpose.
Annoyed by that realization, he’d offered to reinstate her guard—though it hadn’t been planned—in exchange for one condition.
“Well, it wasn’t a bad deal.”
The child had looked displeased upon hearing the condition, but the deal was struck nonetheless.
Of course she’d had no choice but to agree—she’d clearly hated having her guard changed in the first place.
Though it had been an impulsive decision, the outcome was quite satisfying.
After a while, someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
Yan opened the door and bowed his head.
“I was told you wished to speak with me.”
He’d made a promise to the child and used it as leverage for their deal—so he had to say something. Yet, seeing Yan’s face now, he suddenly lost all desire to speak.
For a fleeting moment, he even considered pretending the whole matter never happened.
“Maybe I should’ve sent someone else.”
Yan had been the first to volunteer when he’d ordered someone to fetch the child that first day.
Trusting Yan—who had three younger siblings—to gently coax her along had seemed like a good idea.
But he never expected the child would grow so fond of this particular knight.
At that thought, Kyleius’s expression hardened even further.
He’d made a promise, so he’d keep his word.
Trust was everything in a deal.
…Yet, for some reason, the words wouldn’t come out.
As the silence stretched, an icy, oppressive aura filled the room.
Yan stood tense, waiting for the Duke to speak.
“I didn’t realize Diane liked you that much.”
“No, my Lady—”
“She clearly does.”
The Duke’s sharp tone cut him off. Sensing the mood, Yan wisely stayed silent.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
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MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (107)
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.
Oh, that’s terrifying! She’s so brave. The duke is truly terrifying. What was it that helped her?
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Miioo
Hahaha, the Duke is very jealous! What, you’re not a child?