[Hehe, it’s pretty.]

The silver snake flicked its tongue, looking at the shimmering jewels and beads placed in front of it.

I sat on the bed, swinging my feet as I watched the silver snake.

Those toys that the silver snake was playing with so preciously were things I had given it in exchange for granting a favor before.

‘…In the end, I wasn’t able to find out who the culprit was.’

Seeing the silver snake gather them all at once like that, I realized that four had been taken.

‘This little rascal, I swear.’

[But how did you know? That I like shiny things?]

It seems this rascal didn’t even know that it liked such things.

‘Well, in the original story, it was when it saw the jewels the male lead had that it started to like them, right?’

“Shiny things are pretty, aren’t they?”

I gave it a casual reply as I got up from my seat.

I was starting to feel hungry and was waiting to see when breakfast would be brought, but today the outside was particularly noisy.

‘Is something going on?’

Actually, it had been noisy outside since dawn. It was one of the reasons I woke up so early today.

I quietly opened the door and peeked out into the hallway.

It seemed like they were doing a big cleaning, as all the furniture was being pulled out of one room.

“Move all those over here!”

“Wait, didn’t you say you weren’t using that anymore?”

“First, let’s make space for the new desk that’s coming in!”

I could see the employees busily carrying and moving things. Whatever the reason, everyone seemed busy.

‘I shouldn’t disturb them.’

Closing the door and coming back in, I said to the silver snake while opening my bag.

“It’s time to go in now, Silver Snake.”

[Hmph.]

“I’ll let you out again later.”

[Hmph.]

The silver snake grumbled but slipped into the bag without further complaint.

As I was carefully closing the bag’s lid, Sophia and Delma entered the room.

‘I wonder what’s on the menu for breakfast today?’

I looked at Delma with anticipation. But today, Delma’s hands were empty.

‘There’s nothing!’

I hadn’t doubted it because Delma always brought my breakfast.

As I stared at Delma with a bewildered look, she giggled.

“Young miss, today you’ll be having breakfast in the dining room.”

“Why am I eating in the dining room?”

I tilted my head and asked.

It seemed like I always ate breakfast and dinner in my room, and only went down for a light lunch. Delma solved my confusion.

“The Duke said he wanted to have a meal with you!”

“With the Duke? Why?”

Unlike Delma’s cheerful answer, my lips trembled.

‘It was uncomfortable even when eating snacks.’

How much more uncomfortable would it be to have a meal with the Duke?

Whether she knew my feelings or not, Sophia explained with a pleased expression.

“I told you last night, didn’t I? That you should go to bed early today.”

“Yes, I remember.”

“It’s because there’s someone to welcome today.”

“Who?”

It seems they had been waiting for me to ask this question.

As soon as I asked, Sophia and Delma’s expressions immediately became excited.

“The young master has arrived, Young Master Clemens.”

“He’ll be your first older brother, young miss.”

“He’s 6 years older than you.”

“You’re getting a new older brother, young miss!”

My mouth fell open at their words. Just as I was about to overcome the mountain that was the Duke, another huge mountain called Clemens appeared.

* * *

Clemens, as the Duke’s successor, was a character who didn’t particularly stand out among the villains.

In the beginning, it was mainly the twins who tormented the protagonist, Elizer.

The twins, born with almost infinite magical power, were antagonistic to Elizer, who possessed high divine power.

Literally, they were desperate to kill Elizer. The only person who could restrain these reckless twins was Clemens.

He was the only person the twins respected.

Unlike the twins, Clemens was kind to those around him and took the lead in doing good deeds.

Clemens used the Duke’s wealth and power to save Elizer from danger, and helped him greatly by teaching him how to handle divine power through ancient language interpretation.

Once, when Elizer’s life was threatened by the twins, Clemens stepped in to protect him.

Elizer, who had no siblings and wasn’t on good terms with his uncle, whom he believed to be his only family, naturally opened his heart to Clemens.

I too didn’t expect him to be a villain until well past the middle of the original story.

However, later, just before Elizer was about to contract with the divine beast, it was revealed that Clemens was the one who had poisoned him, and only then did Clemens show his true colors.

When Elizer asked why, Clemens coldly replied.

‘Is a reason necessary?’

Of course, Elizer, being the protagonist, didn’t die easily. However, feeling greatly betrayed, Elizer completely closed his heart to others from that day on.

Even I, who had read that scene, was so shocked that my heart pounded.

To backstab someone while smiling like that!

‘The twins who openly do bad things are better.’

Even I had such thoughts, so you can imagine how bad it was.

And now, to suddenly face such a Clemens, it was natural to feel nervous.

‘I haven’t prepared anything yet.’

My lips went dry.

The reason Clemens poisoned Elizer, it’s easy to understand if you know why Clemens was nice to Elizer from the beginning.

It’s because Clemens judged that Elizer had value to be used.

On the other hand, I’m just a useless stone that rolled in.

Now that the Duke has accepted me as his daughter, I wouldn’t be welcome to the adopted sons who came before me.

Would Clemens leave me alone?

I anxiously asked.

“Can’t I just eat in my room?”

“No, you can’t. Today is the first time you’re having a meal with the young master.”

Sophia seemed to think I was just nervous, judging from my worried question.

“It’s okay, young miss. Young Master Clemens is a kind person.”

But he’s only kind on the outside, Sophia.

He’s a villain who will hand you poisoned chocolate with a smile if you get in his way.

“The Duke is eating with us too, right?”

“Yes, of course.”

Sophia answered as if it was obvious. I finally let out a sigh of relief at that.

Perhaps the one fortunate thing is that the Duke will be eating with us too.

With the Duke beside me, he won’t be able to do anything to me right away.

‘I’ll have to stick close to the Duke.’

Having to stick close to a villain to avoid another villain. I sighed deeply at this ironic situation.

“Young miss, come over here.”

Following Delma’s hand, I stopped in front of the mirror. The result of Delma and Sophia’s busy work while I was feeling down was now visible before me.

As I raised my head, my eyes met with a child who looked exactly like me in the mirror.

My appearance, more dressed up than usual, felt somewhat unfamiliar.

On top of my hair that reached my shoulder line, a yellow lace hairpin was pinned, and the hemline of the matching dress spread out like a flower bud.

Even without asking, I could tell that Sophia and Delma had put extra effort into dressing me up today.

They probably wanted me to make a good impression on the brother I was meeting for the first time.

“Shall we go then?”

I left the room holding Sophia’s hand.

‘I hope nothing happens.’

I was fervently praying inside as I slowly took each step when…

“Sophia?”

A young boy’s voice was heard from the end of the corridor. Light footsteps gradually approached, neither slow nor fast.

I stiffened reflexively, startled.

“Young master. Have you been well?”

“Yeah, I’m always the same. Oh, Delma is here too?”

“Young master, it’s been a while!”

“Yeah, Delma. It’s been a while.”

The boy answered cheerfully with a laugh. His youthful voice sounded unfamiliar.

I turned my head slightly, trying to calm my anxious heart.

Just then, a blonde-haired boy who met my eyes smiled at me.

“Is this the child? Right?”

“Yes, this is Miss Diane, the Duke’s daughter. Young miss, this is Young Master Clemens I mentioned earlier.”

Sophia gently pulled me and brought me in front of Clemens.

“Hello?”

The boy’s eyes curved gently. Meeting Clemens for the first time, I couldn’t help but be a little surprised.

Even in the original work, Clemens was often described as not looking or acting like a villain on the outside.

He always went around smiling and treated everyone kindly.

But seeing him in person, the description in the original work was inadequate. I felt my tension dissipate at once upon seeing his kind and gentle smile.

Even though I clearly knew the hidden truth, facing him made me doubt if he was really a villain.

The Duke looked perfectly villainous even in appearance, so there was no doubt.

If the Duke was like a dark night, or a deep dawn before the sun rises, what would Clemens be like?

‘Like a bright sun.’

It was as if a halo shone behind his face, like the scenery of a bright morning with the sun rising.

“Um…”

Clemens scratched his cheek with his index finger, smiling as if embarrassed. Only then did I realize that I had been staring at Clemens too intently.

I quickly lowered my gaze.

It was a bit sudden, but this was my first encounter with him anyway. I forced a smile and greeted him.

“Ah, hello.”

I didn’t forget to raise one hand slightly and wave it. Clemens didn’t immediately return my greeting.

The blank stare in his eyes made me anxious, not knowing what it meant.

‘Did he find it offensive that I stared earlier?’

“Ah…”

Instead, Clemens covered his mouth with one hand. He trailed off, staring at me intently.

Fortunately, he doesn’t seem to be offended, but somehow his reaction is strange.

‘Why is he staring at me like that?’

“Is this child really my sister?”

I flinched involuntarily at that question.

This is another reason why I’m so nervous.

Unlike the adopted sons who were chosen by the Duke for their outstanding talents, I was just an ordinary child with no special abilities or talents.

Although I was brought in under the pretext of being his biological daughter, even that reason was just a lie fabricated by the Duke.

‘Even in the Duke’s eyes, I probably don’t compare to the young masters.’

Even before he was adopted, Clemens was a child who could fluently speak not only the common language but also foreign languages.

How insignificant must I look in his eyes? Perhaps this is why he’s not returning my greeting now.

‘No. This might actually be good.’

Maybe he’ll leave me alone if he thinks I’m too insignificant.

Suddenly, my eyes met Clemens’. Clemens had his fists tightly clenched and his eyes were sparkling.

That unexpected gaze was intense.

“Hoho, our young miss is really cute, isn’t she?”

I was startled by Delma’s words. It was natural for Delma to find me cute, but not for Clemens.

However, Clemens’ reaction was unexpected.

The corners of Clemens’ mouth turned up.

“Yes, she is.”

Delma, seeming to take his reaction positively, chattered excitedly beside him.

On the other hand, facing Clemens’ smile, I felt a chill run down my spine.

‘He’s even scarier when he smiles…’