The Dead Villainess Is Pregnant With The Male Lead's Child (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 2
“Ugh… Uuuugh!”
Veronica opened her eyes, feeling her insides twist in agony.
A constant stream of groans escaped from her parched mouth.
‘I thought I was dead… but I’m alive?’
Every sense was overwhelmed by excruciating pain, so she failed to notice the unfamiliar scenery before her.
‘…It hurts. It hurts so much! If this is how it’s going to be, I’d rather just… die…’
Veronica felt no gratitude or joy at being alive.
Because of the intense pain, a peaceful death felt like a blessing.
“Aaah… ugh…!”
Veronica let out another pained moan and sank once more into unconsciousness, falling into a deep, boundless sleep.
[This is the timeline separator]How much time had passed?
Veronica had no idea whether it had been hours or days.
All she knew was that the place where she’d opened her eyes was utterly unfamiliar and new.
Lying still, she rolled her eyes left and right, taking in her surroundings cautiously.
Stern-faced physicians and maids bustled about busily.
Among the many physicians, one who seemed to be in charge approached her and spoke politely.
“Your Highness, your fever has subsided considerably, so you should be feeling much better. Is there anything troubling you?”
“…No, I think I’m all right.”
Veronica, lying straight under the covers, slowly shook her head.
Her pale face looked weak, but inwardly, she was cheering with joy.
‘Not only did I wake up after dying—possessing someone else’s body—but of all people, Her Royal Highness the Princess! That’s literally a golden spoon!’
Her lips twitched repeatedly, trying to curl into a smile.
‘No, it’s even better than that! Look—even now, how many physicians and maids are scrambling just to treat this one body of mine.’
Unaware of her inner exclamations, the physician continued his explanation respectfully.
“There’s still some poison lingering in your body, so regular meals aren’t possible yet. After one more day of medicine, the poison should be completely expelled.”
“…”
Veronica’s eyes widened at the word “poison” spoken by the physician.
‘What? Did I… ingest poison? That’s why it hurt so much. Does that mean this princess is hated?’
Her heart sank.
Life in the imperial palace, where assassination threats lurked everywhere—Veronica suddenly found all this luxury utterly undesirable.
‘Wouldn’t it be better to just die quickly… than live in constant fear of death?’
Her thoughts and emotions tangled messily.
Unaware, as always, of what was going on inside her, the physician spoke calmly again.
“If you take congee along with your medicine just one more day, you’ll be able to eat regular food starting tomorrow.”
“…All right.”
Veronica gave a small nod.
Following the physician’s instructions, the maids brought in medicine and congee.
Just then—
Without even a knock, the door burst open, and the Emperor and Empress entered, splendidly dressed, followed by the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, and the Third Prince.
“Veronica’s awakened? How’s her condition?”
“Veronica! Are you all right?”
The Emperor and Empress hurried to her bedside, fussing anxiously.
The heavy scent of perfume stung Veronica’s nose, making her frown slightly.
But the perfume’s smell wasn’t what mattered right now.
‘…Veronica? …Veronica!’
Just from hearing that name, she understood everything.
She was inside the romance web novel ‘Evangelina of Dawn,’ the very story she’d shared with her friends during their teenage years.
She’d read it as a web novel in elementary school, as a webtoon in middle school, and revisited printed copies of both during high school—how could she possibly not recognize it?
Her heart began pounding violently.
‘So the original owner of this body is Veronica…? I’ve possessed Veronica’s body! And of all people, the villainess doomed to die soon!’
Princess Veronica was the quintessential villainess.
She’d cruelly tormented the female lead, the saintess, and eventually even attempted to frame her for murder—only to be exposed and executed in the end.
She perfectly embodied every trope of a classic villainess.
‘Originally, thanks to the image crafted by the imperial family, she was adored by the public like a national sweetheart or idol—but then she committed every imaginable atrocity against the original heroine, exposing her true nature to the entire world.’
Even the imperial family couldn’t save their only princess from execution.
Because the imperial court—steeped in extravagance, decadence, corruption, and decay—simply lacked the power to do so.
‘Was it just a lack of power? They never truly loved or cared for her at all.’
The Emperor and Empress didn’t see Veronica as their daughter.
The Crown Prince and the other princes didn’t regard her as family.
To them, Veronica was merely a tool—
A tool to whitewash the corrupt image of the imperial family.
‘And quite an effective one, too. Hah, damn it!’
Before the princess was born, the empire had suffered a prolonged drought, plunging the people into famine and starvation.
Exhausted by hunger, citizens cursed the heavens and scorned the incompetent imperial family.
But on the day the princess was born, rain miraculously poured from the sky.
It continued for a full week.
That was why—
Veronica became a symbol of good fortune and prosperity, beloved by the empire’s people.
Yet as with all things, gain came at a cost.
The empire’s overwhelming affection and attention toward the princess ultimately turned against her.
Though utterly incompetent in every other regard, the Emperor was strangely shrewd when it came to exploiting the image of his young daughter.
Thus, from the moment of her birth until she turned twenty, every move Veronica made was frequently featured in newspapers alongside large illustrations.
Whenever the imperial family faced scandals, they used Veronica as their shield.
Even people furious at the court’s incompetence and corruption would laugh and cry along with articles about the princess.
‘So… this poisoning incident must’ve served that exact purpose too, right?’
Veronica watched the Emperor, Empress, Crown Prince, and the princes carefully, her guard never lowering.
Once the physicians and maids had all left, the Empress spoke first.
“I personally adjusted your dosage this time—quite skillfully, wouldn’t you say? I suppose I’m getting better at this the more I do it!”
Her high-pitched cackle grated on Veronica’s ears.
The Second Prince, Tate, standing nearby, chimed in eagerly.
He was her older brother, two years her senior.
“Now that you mention it, that’s absolutely right! The plan was for you to regain consciousness after four days of unconsciousness, followed by another four days of recovery—wasn’t it?”
“Yes, exactly. You remember it perfectly, Tate.”
“To align so precisely with our planned schedule! You’re truly amazing, Your Majesty!”
Though clearly spoken by humans, every word sounded like utter nonsense.
Veronica, leaning against the headboard, grew paler by the second.
In contrast, the rest of the family radiated an almost nauseatingly cheerful atmosphere.
The Third Prince, Caspian, spoke up.
Though towering in height, the fifteen-year-old boy still carried traces of childishness, his eyes narrowed petulantly.
“Thanks to you, sister, all the articles about me vanished! I thought things would blow up this time—some pig-like girl was publicly shamed, and that dumb boy ended up crippled—but now it’s completely quiet!”
He prattled on as if boasting about some great achievement.
“It’s so eerily calm it’s boring! People must’ve lost their minds—already forgetting all about it. Thank you, sister!”
Ah… so that’s how it was! Veronica ground her teeth, struggling to suppress her rising fury.
It disgusted her.
No matter how high their status in this rigid class society, repeatedly harming others without just cause would inevitably draw criticism.
Especially when the victims were nobles.
And if the perpetrator happened to be their youngest, naive, and utterly clueless prince, public opinion could turn icy cold.
‘So they poisoned Veronica just to cover up the Third Prince’s scandalous incident! How can you even call yourselves human?’
Veronica’s fists, clenched tightly around the blanket, tensed further.
Rage bubbled furiously in her chest.
‘What? You call that “proper dosage adjustment”? You’re wrong! The Veronica you knew is already gone from this world! She’s dead! The Veronica before you now isn’t the real one!’
She barely restrained the urge to scream those words at the masked monsters before her.
The Emperor stroked his goatee slowly and spoke with solemn dignity.
But to Veronica, he looked nothing more than the idiotic ringleader of a pathetic gang of villains.
“This worked out remarkably well. You should recover fully before the victory parade next week, with no trouble moving about.”
Victory parade? Veronica perked up, intently focusing on their conversation.
She needed to gather every possible clue about how far the original story had progressed.
The Empress seconded the Emperor’s words.
“Yes! If you appear at the victory parade fully recovered—and show affection toward Sir Killion—the people will go wild for you again.”
A victory parade and Sir Killion?
Then this must be the very beginning of the original story.
‘Veronica hasn’t even met the female lead Evangelina yet. That means she hasn’t accumulated any karmic debt!’
What incredible luck! There was still a chance! Veronica secretly let out a sigh of relief.
Just then, Caspian began giggling, his shoulders shaking.
“They’re such simple-minded fools! Such idiots!”
Pure, one-hundred-percent malice! Veronica clicked her tongue inwardly as she stared at her own brother.
Caspian showed not a shred of guilt despite having crippled someone for no reason—making the fifteen-year-old look like a demon.
His family, who went to such lengths to protect him, were no different.
‘Then again, until now, the people of the empire have been completely fooled by them.’
It must’ve been easy.
They had their shield—the beautiful, pitiable, lovable princess everyone wanted to protect.
‘But that ends today. From now on, things won’t go your way anymore—just wait and see! The puppet Veronica you controlled is already dead!’
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (141)
What are these monsters disguised as imperial family?
Killion seems better than other regret full ML’s but let see
You are giving rather air head vibes FL. Not liking it
Inline Comments (417)
Gasp! Was it really that obvious? Veronica’s voice trembled slightly in panic.
Did you just ask if it was obvious? Were u even making effort to appear like og Veronica?
"It’s fortunate you’ve finally realized, even if late. You’re simply too dim-wit
I think the Empress character has a narcissistic mother personality — she uses her daughter as a mirror for her own glory and doesn’t see her as an independent person
All the way back to his room, Killion grumbled to himself.
Awww this makes me feel sad for my younger siblings
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VKotaku28
Full disclosure, I started this because the little prince in the cover looks so cute!