Seduced the Doomed Villain (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 6

Could this truly be the statline of a villainess who disappears before the original story even begins?

The fortress-like castle crumbled before the monstrous strength of a man famed for his insane physique.

“Sis… Siiiiis!”

While everyone else stood frozen, unable to move, Noel swiftly sprang into action.

He had been sitting on the dignified-looking knight’s lap but ran toward her the moment he saw her.

“Noel!”

Overjoyed, Diana tried to rush forward too, but Rodric grabbed her wrist.

Startled by his sudden move, she looked up at him—just in time to see Noel bump his little head against an invisible barrier and tumble backward with a thud.

“Huuuuh… Sis…”

The broken wall began regenerating once more. Noel scrambled to his feet and pounded the transparent barrier with his tiny fists.

“Sis! Sis!”

The pitiful sight of the child distracted those present long enough for them to snap back to attention upon seeing their master.

His blue eyes were ice-cold, sharp enough to cut through flesh. The knights swallowed hard.

“Find the point connected to the castle.”

At his brief command, the knights responded in unison.

“Yes!”

As soon as their reply ended, the rising wall completed its restoration, once again sealing them off from each other.

“I suppose we’ll have to find an escape route.”

Her fleeting hope collapsed instantly, leaving her disheartened. Such overwhelmingly powerful magic…

Diana nodded, strengthening her grip on the wrist Rodric held.

“We’ll have to play hide-and-seek after all, won’t we?”

“Yes. Just you, Princess.”

Me? Confused, she blinked rapidly, then bit the inside of her cheek at his next words.

“From now on, we act separately. You do what you must as the princess. I’ll look for another escape on my own.”

Right now, thanks to Rodric, she was fully recharged—but she never knew when her magic might suddenly drain again without warning.

If only magic depletion were the worst of it. Those who hadn’t experienced the pain couldn’t possibly understand.

Rodric’s judgment was sound. Moving separately was far more efficient than staying together.

Intellectually, she understood—but still hesitated at the thought of parting from him. The coming agony frightened her.

“You kept clinging to my side, worried I’d get hurt.”

“The fog’s cleared. At least you won’t trip and fall now.”

With a swing of his axe, he dispelled even the lingering fog. As the haze filling the entrance hall vanished, their visibility gradually improved.

Now, the only dangers to watch for were teleportation circles or traps that might unleash monsters.

“What if we get lost and can’t find each other?”

“I’ll come looking for you.”

When she looked up at him skeptically, Rodric—who had been gazing indifferently down at her—let out a short sigh and pulled something from his chest pocket.

“Keep this. It’s enchanted with a location-tracking spell.”

It was a pendant set with a vivid blue mana crystal that mirrored the color of his eyes.

Diana quietly took it, lips dry, unsure whether to speak or stay silent.

“Well…”

Just as Rodric turned to leave after saying his piece, Diana hastily grabbed his arm.

“Rodric!”

He turned back, as if asking if she had more to say. She hesitated before continuing.

“Um… before we part, could you give me a tight hug?”

One of his eyebrows arched sharply, clearly put off.

“No, it’s not like I’m clinging to you like some creep. I’m sure lots of women throw themselves at handsome men like you, but I’m not asking with any shady ulterior motive.”

His eyes darkened as if ready to kill someone, and Diana’s voice shrank to a whisper.

“You sound suspiciously shady.”

“Huh?”

“You just need to hug me?”

Huh? That easily? Her pink eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected answer, and she quickly replied before he could change his mind.

“Yes! Just a hug would be enough. Or even just holding hands if you find hugging unpleasant.”

As she held out her hand, Rodric took it and pulled her close.

Moved by his unexpectedly open embrace—she’d thought him an impenetrable wall—he actually turned out to be reasonable.

Seeing this thoughtful side of him gave her hope. Since things had come this far… should she try proposing under the guise of a deal?

“Princess.”

She inhaled deeply, still feeling the lingering weight of the dense curse she’d absorbed. His solid, masculine scent soothed her anxious heart.

“Nothing else to say?”

“What do you mean?”

She blinked, racking her brain—had she forgotten something? Then she remembered the missing piece.

“Oh! Thank you, Rodric.”

“I meant you had nothing else to say.”

“Huh?”

He cupped her cheek with one hand and looked down at her impassively. His inscrutable blue eyes seemed to pierce straight through her.

His posture looked ready for a passionate kiss—but it felt utterly unromantic, more like an interrogation.

“What are you doing?”

His grip flattened her already thin cheeks, distorting her speech.

“You’re ugly.”

“Ha.”

Who? Me? Diana, the younger sister of the empire’s most famously beautiful villainess, was herself stunning—ranked just behind the female lead and the villainess in beauty. She had every reason to be confident in her looks.

“That’s rude. I’m not falling behind anyone anywhere, just so you know.”

“Such remarkable confidence.”

“It’s the truth.”

Without listening to another word, Rodric turned away and strode off with long, purposeful steps.

Once her presence faded behind him, Rodric glanced down at his own hand. An unfamiliar warmth lingered even beneath his black glove.

Strangely, touching her hadn’t felt unpleasant at all.

Though usually hypersensitive and tense, being with Diana had softened his nerves, granting him a rare sense of calm.

This didn’t feel like mere coincidence—too many oddities pointed otherwise.

Something was definitely off. His sharp instincts told him so. Merely watching Diana try so hard to stick close to him confirmed it.

If she wouldn’t reveal it herself, he’d uncover it himself. Whether it would benefit or harm him remained uncertain.

‘It’s been a long time since my mania settled down.’

His younger brother had run away, claiming he’d break the curse—but there were only two ways to lift it:

Either the one his brother found would inherit the curse, or the brother himself would ultimately collapse under its weight.

Both paths led to his own death—and he accepted that calmly.

With no heir to pass it to, if his brother perished, the curse might veer unpredictably and harm his sibling instead.

Thus, he had no choice but to endure the suffering until his brother inherited the dukedom and produced an heir.

That fragile boy simply wasn’t strong enough to bear it.

As long as his brother didn’t inherit the curse, Rodric didn’t care what became of himself.

[Dad!]

Without warning, a child appeared, blocking Rodric’s path.

“What is it?”

[Mom’s just left like that? You’re moving alone?]

“I have no intention of playing along with your childish games.”

He walked straight through the child’s body and continued searching for an exit.

[I told you I’d let you out!]

“I don’t trust the words of vermin.”

[Really? Then I’ll open the exit only for Mom!]

“Do as you please.”

[Then I’ll have to punish you, Dad! You tried to destroy our castle on your own—so you’ll stay with us forever, until the day you die!]

The child clapped his hands together. The floor turned muddy, sinking beneath his feet as the corridor transformed into a swamp, slowly swallowing him.

But his expression remained calm—utterly unfazed, as if he’d faced such things countless times before.

Ironically, it was the child who looked startled.

[Huh? Why aren’t you scared?]

“Where does this connect to?”

[Hmph! Like I’d tell you! Hmm… is this too weak? How about this?]

The child snapped his fingers. Rodric’s vision flipped—and he stood in a different space.

In that hauntingly familiar yet horrifying place, his lips twisted savagely.

‘Brother…’

Inside a room soaked in red blood, a woman wailed as her younger brother died in her arms.

‘Don’t come, brother. I’m fine.’

The curse didn’t only affect the bloodline—it drove even the duke’s lifelong companion mad over time.

A horrifying curse that made a mother unable to recognize her own child.

‘Aaaah! That! That’s not my child! It’s a monster!’

Despite being told to stay away, craving his mother’s embrace, the younger brother crawled toward her anyway.

‘Brother…’

His brother just smiled apologetically, as if he’d done something right.

‘Who—someone get rid of that thing!’

Amid the dizzying, chaotic scenery, his vision blurred.

‘Please, someone kill that monster!’

His eyes swam as though shards of broken glass reflected blinding light.

Ah… how had he reacted back then?

Even knowing this was an illusion, nausea rose in his throat, choking him.

The child grinned widely at the rare disturbance in the man who seemed incapable of emotion.

Should he trap this man deep beneath the castle forever?

Just then, the child’s relaxed, smug expression—arms crossed and smiling—suddenly twisted.

Someone was tampering with his core. Gasping, the child vanished, his face contorted like a demon.

[This is the timeline separator]

“I think I’ve found them all.”

Diana held a bundle of old toys and trinkets—threadbare dolls, wooden practice swords—clutched tightly to her chest.

They were well-worn playthings, each infused with a child’s lingering emotions.

She’d assumed only one child had proposed the game of hide-and-seek—but many were actually hiding.

Finding them wasn’t difficult. Their emotional imprints resonated like mana, allowing her to sense their souls. When she lifted each object, the children’s spirits naturally followed her.

Her ability to perceive mana proved useful here.

After parting with Rodric, she moved quickly in her restored body. Feeling lighter than she had in ages, she practically flew through the corridors.

One of the children trailing behind tugged her sleeve and pointed ahead. It was time to end this long, painful game of hide-and-seek.

“Is that it?”

The child nodded. It belonged to the one who’d first challenged her to hide-and-seek.

As she reached toward the object containing his soul, the child burst out from the air.

[Don’t touch it!]

“I found you all.”

Flames erupted across the room as she stretched out her hand. Charred furniture sent up fresh plumes of smoke, filling the space with choking fumes.

“So it wasn’t fog—it was smoke.”

Everything felt real, yet it was all illusion. Though the searing heat threatened to melt her skin, she ignored it and kept reaching.

Behind a cornered piece of furniture, she picked up a half-melted teaspoon.

“There you are.”

[Don’t touch me!]

The child was terrified. He’d asked her to find him—but never imagined she actually would.

He’d wanted to escape, yet paradoxically hoped she’d fail. He didn’t want anyone to witness their hideously distorted forms.

Adults were frightening—but also deeply missed.

Wahhh! The child who’d charged at her like a demon now sobbed, screaming about the heat. The others weren’t much different.

Hidden in dark, narrow crevices, the children’s souls appeared whenever she touched their belongings—each horribly burned, disfigured, and crying endlessly, unable to leave the spots where their objects lay.

This was a mage’s castle. She didn’t know its true purpose—but one thing was certain: children had been sacrificed here.

Holding her arms full of their belongings, Diana led the children out of the western corridor. The thick smoke blocking her path proved useless against her resolve.

The illusions felt utterly real, and though her eyes stung with tears from the acrid smoke, she pressed on.

Her restored body felt strong. Even amidst the blazing heat, her steps never faltered.

[Hey, where are we going?]

“To your guardian.”

Her voice was firm, her expression resolute—and strangely, she looked angry.